Tipsheet

I Have a Bad Feeling About This Classified Document Investigation Involving Trump

Trump’s legal team met with officials of the Biden Justice Department on June 5. We don’t know the details or why the meeting was requested, but it sounds like lawyers for the former president are bracing for another indictment. 

A special counsel is investigating Donald Trump regarding removing classified materials from the White House upon his departure from office of the presidency. They were primarily mementos from his time serving the country. Some items taken to Mar-a-Lago were cocktail napkins and menus from state dinners. The National Archives engaged in a lengthy email exchange with Trump’s lawyers about the missing items, culminating in the FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago last summer, an event I thought could catapult Trump to the 2024 GOP nomination. Times have changed, especially regarding how far the Democrats will stretch the law to ensnare someone they detest politically and personally. 

The indictment from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg was a blow to the integrity of the system on anything involving Trump. As we’ve noted here many times, Trump was indicted on campaign finance violations stemming from his hush money arrangement with Stormy Daniels, a former porn star. According to Bragg's office, this alleged tryst was vital to the voters’ interests. Even if Trump broke the law here, the statute of limitations, in a sane world, has long expired, though Bragg factored in COVID to charge Trump and elevate the initial misdemeanor charges Trump was facing into felonies. The pandemic stopped the clock on the statute of limitations; that’s the grand work-around here. Most cases of this nature never go to trial, resulting in a proverbial slap on the wrist. 

The fact that Trump’s legal team wanted to meet with Attorney General Merrick Garland and his people is a massive red flag that another indictment is coming. What’s worse is that before this meeting, Trump was caught on an audio recording discussing the items he took from the White House. Even the former president appears to be bracing for the worst (via Associated Press) [emphasis mine]: 

Lawyers for Donald Trump met with Justice Department officials on Monday as a decision nears on whether to bring criminal charges over the handling of classified documents at the former president’s Florida estate. 

The Trump lawyers two weeks ago requested a meeting with Attorney General Merrick Garland to raise concerns about what they alleged was prosecutorial misconduct and overreach by the team led by special counsel Jack Smith. But a defense attorney meeting with Justice Department officials is also often used as an opportunity to try to persuade prosecutors against bringing charges in the final stages of an investigation. 

It was not clear what was discussed during the meeting, but Trump, in a social media post and talk radio interview, signaled that he was prepared for the possibility that he would be charged and reiterated his attacks on the investigation. 

[…] 

After the meeting ended, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform in capital letters: “How can DOJ possibly charge me, who did nothing wrong” when no other presidents have been charged. He referenced the investigation into his 2016 opponent Hillary Clinton, which ended without criminal charges, and a separate ongoing probe into the presence of classified documents at an office and home of President Joe Biden. And he characterized it as a “witch hunt.” 

He also called into the Todd Starnes radio show, where he confirmed the meeting with his lawyers and said, “Well, I can just say this: They did go in and they saw ’em and they said very unfair. No other president has ever been charged with anything like his.’” 

Again, the point of these legal actions is to not throw Trump in jail, though that would be the ideal scenario for liberals. It’s to neutralize the GOP for 2024. You cannot campaign effectively if your presidential nominee is facing multiple indictments and trials. It cannot be done. It’s to trap Republicans by animating their voters, rightfully incensed by these bogus legal actions, to usher Trump the 2024 nomination, thereby rendering him campaign ineffective for the whole cycle. Trump could become the most polished and incisive politician over the course of the next few months—it would never pivot away from the fact that he’s facing monumental legal headaches just as the 2024 season gets serious. 

If the Democrats can make up the rules on a hush money scenario to get an indictment, they could easily get Trump in the classified documents investigation. We should prepare for the worst. Don't be surprised if something happens.