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An attorney for former President Donald Trump is pushing back against the Biden Justice Department’s claims that classified materials were seized during the FBI’s raid last week at Mar-a-Lago.
According to a Fox News update Saturday evening, the attorney certified in June that no classified documents remained at the palatial estate, which is located in Palm Beach, Fla., citing two sources familiar with the situation.
“Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigations executed a search warrant of former President Trump’s Florida estate on Monday and seized items which include 11 sets of material that are listed as classified,” the update continued, adding:
Trump’s lawyers previously held a high-level meeting with people from the Justice Department and the FBI, which the former president briefly attended, but it’s unclear if the letter was signed during the meeting.
Lawyers for former President Trump could face serious legal consequences if they knowingly gave false information to law enforcement.
Trump reacted again to the raid on his Truth Social platform.
“The RAID was Politics, the Midterm Elections, and 2024. It’s another form of Election CHEATING – That’s all the Radical Left Democrats know what to do. They use the FBI & DOJ to try and dirty up their opponents, but the people of our Country are wise to them like never before. Be careful what you wish for!” he wrote.
In addition, Fox News reported that the FBI seized sensitive attorney-client privilege documents during the raid.
“Sources familiar with the investigation told Fox News Saturday that the former president’s team was informed that boxes labeled A-14, A-26, A-43, A-13, A-33, and a set of documents—all seen on the final page of the FBI’s property receipt —contained information covered by attorney-client privilege,” the outlet reported.
“Attorney-client privilege refers to a legal privilege that keeps communications between an attorney and their client confidential,” Fox News added.
The report went on to note that sources said some of the records could also be covered by executive privilege, which provides the president and others within the Executive Branch authority to withhold certain items deemed sensitive such as advice and consultation between the president and his senior aides and advisers.
But Fox News reported at this point, it’s not clear if those records pertain to communications between Trump and his private attorneys, White House counsel during his term, or both.
Sources also informed the network that, because of the suspected attorney-client privilege, Trump’s legal team has requested to know the Justice Department’s position on whether it would allow a third party, independent master to review the records. However, the sources said that the DOJ told Trump’s lawyers it would oppose such a request.
“The locations to be searched include the ‘45 Office,’ all storage rooms, and all other rooms or areas within the premises used or available to be used by FPOTUS and his staff and in which boxes or documents could be stored, including all structures or buildings on the estate,” the search warrant, signed Aug. 5 by federal Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart, a known anti-Trump figure, says.
The warrant empowered agents with authority to seize “all physical documents and records constituting evidence, contraband, fruits of crime, or other items illegally possessed” in violation of U.S. Code, including documents with classification markings and presidential records created during the entire four-year Trump term.
Republicans have expressed anger and concern at the raid of a former president, which is unprecedented.
“The raid of MAL is another escalation in the weaponization of federal agencies against the Regime’s political opponents, while people like Hunter Biden get treated with kid gloves,” Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis said. “Now the Regime is getting another 87k IRS agents to wield against its adversaries? Banana Republic.”
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), confident that the GOP will win back control of the House in November’s midterms, warned: “Attorney General Garland: preserve your documents and clear your calendar.”
Attorney General Garland: preserve your documents and clear your calendar. pic.twitter.com/dStAjnwbAT
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) August 9, 2022
