FBI search warrant executed at Mar-a-Lago (Update: Trump Indicted!)

[Middle-aged Europe]

Didn't the FBI get the memo??

When the president does it, that means it is not illegal!

[Middle-aged Europe]

I think the biggest issue I see here is not the theft of classified information, which is bad of course, but the knee-jerk lamenting of the raid simply because he's a former president.

Yeah, that strikes me as peculiar too. Let's assume, just for the sake of the argument, that Trump (or Obama, Bush, Clinton, Carter) has committed a crime. Do we really expect law enforcement agencies to do nothing about it, simply he's a former president? Seems a bit like a cult of personality to me.

[Middle-aged Europe]

https://twitter.com/GlennYoungkin/status/1556996346799919104

If the FBI made mistakes in past, any decision undertaken by the FBI could be a mistake?

I'm pretty sure that's a fallacy although off the top of head I'm not entirely sure what kind of fallacy.

Can somebody help out here please?

[Middle-aged Europe]

https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1557379459874955266

[Middle-aged Europe]

Will riled up MAGAists storm the FBI headquarters soon? 

[Middle-aged Europe]

This probably helps Trump politically in the short-term. Literally the majority of the GOP is coming to his aid as a result of this.

Hot take: Republican, Trump-appointed FBI Director Chris Wray authorized the raid on Mar-a-Lago in order to help Trump politically.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Republicans are rightfully outraged over the Florida raid!

As an ambassador for Russia, Donald Trump possesses DIPLOMATIC IMMUNITY after all.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Wait, I thought the judge was a conservative appointed by Trump? Which is it?

Reinhart is a magistrate judge, who get appointed by district judges.


Newsweek reports though:

Reinhart has also previously donated to both Democratic and Republican political campaigns. In 2008, he gave $1,000 to former President Barack Obama's campaign and a further $1,000 to the Obama Victory Fund.

In 2016, Reinhart donated $500 to the presidential campaign of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination that was eventually won by Trump.

https://www.newsweek.com/who-bruce-reinhart-judge-approved-fbi-mar-lago-raid-donald-trump-florida-1732353?fbclid=IwAR0f99QCp6D8MSCCkwf9iyo7I1h7W2SsDE7zW7lf9Y8PD8OziMJcvjJe_HM

[Middle-aged Europe]

Wait, I thought the judge was a conservative appointed by Trump? Which is it?

Reinhart is a magistrate judge, who get appointed by district judges.


Newsweek reports though:

Reinhart has also previously donated to both Democratic and Republican political campaigns. In 2008, he gave $1,000 to former President Barack Obama's campaign and a further $1,000 to the Obama Victory Fund.

In 2016, Reinhart donated $500 to the presidential campaign of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination that was eventually won by Trump.

https://www.newsweek.com/who-bruce-reinhart-judge-approved-fbi-mar-lago-raid-donald-trump-florida-1732353?fbclid=IwAR0f99QCp6D8MSCCkwf9iyo7I1h7W2SsDE7zW7lf9Y8PD8OziMJcvjJe_HM

He was an Obama-Jeb! voter? Based

The fact of the matter is that Reinhart didn't support Trump in 2016 which means he's a NeverTrumper RINO. If you are not with Trump you are against him!

[Middle-aged Europe]

https://twitter.com/ktbenner/status/1557848942800687106

Aren't these the same people who were whining that the DoJ wasn't being open about what the search was about? And now, if I'm understanding this, they're suing to stop them from doing so?

Donald Trump has nothing... really NOTHING
... to hide.

(https://tvtropes.org/Main/SuspiciouslySpecificDenial)

[Middle-aged Europe]

Donald Trump probably believed that as a president who was "legitimately" re-elected in an election that was then "stolen" from him that he had the right to possess these documents.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Trump going with the world-class projection of "Obama stole nuclear documents too!" rather than a simple denial or deflection is a really weird move - and ironically makes the accusation (something I'd have denied as entirely fantastical even 48 hours ago) feel far more plausible.

Both sides steal nuclear secrets! #BothSidesDoIt

[Middle-aged Europe]

https://twitter.com/sgurman/status/1558140291449765888?s=21&t=8CjPqO959CaH2s...

The article is paywalled, but the first paragraph is visible and says:

FBI agents who searched former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home Monday removed 11 sets of classified documents, including some marked as top secret and meant to be only available in special government facilities, according to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Another possible scenario that comes to mind ...

Do you think some of the stuff trump wanted to keep, for bragging purposes, were Area 51 and UFO/alien related classified documents/photos ?

Imagine if Trump just panics and blurts out that aliens are real, and this is how the world finds out...

"I took the documents with me because nobody can make better deals with the aliens than me!"

[Middle-aged Europe]

You can start the countdown until someone is arguing in favour of repealing the "antiquated" Espionage Act.

[Middle-aged Europe]

https://twitter.com/juliegraceb/status/1558201612694331392

This will of course go nowhere, but it will be interesting to see who signs on to it.

Impeach MTG.

[Middle-aged Europe]

What's the general Republican voter consensus here?

Fuzzy and that ilk. I'm assuming they're excusing this, deflecting it, or ignoring it?

DT and particularly OSR have had measured and reasonable responses.  Some others have not.  I don't recall seeing Fuzzy in the thread.

Top "story" on OAN's website right now is "House Oversight Committee Republicans demand answers from DOJ".

Among other things, they're making a big deal about the FBI supposedly having an "informant" around Trump at Mar-a-Lago
(although I'm not sure, assuming it is even true, what the scandal here is... if Trump is suspected of having committed a crime why not make use of an informant?).

[Middle-aged Europe]

"Don't prosecute Trump, his supporters might react negatively" is perhaps the most reprehensible defense I've seen here.

It implies that Trump supporters devoid of agency and that we must all walk on eggshells to avoid risking their wrath, as if they're a rabid dog that might attack us if we look at it the wrong way. It also implies that if someone has enough supporters, they should be effectively above the law.

It's amounts to a policy of appeasement, essentially.

The justice system can't make its decisions contingent on whether it is under terrorist threat.

[Middle-aged Europe]

What happened to Scott Perry should scare everyone IMO!

Imagine you are travelling with your family and a bunch of FBI Agents show up and take your personal cell phone just because you are opposing the current Political Party in Power?

That's not the reason is was confiscated.
But nice fairy tale. What child's story book did you find that one in?

That is exactly why it was confiscated! He opposes the current Political Party and is a Trump Supporter.

Why wasn't Elise Stefaniks Cell Phone confiscated for example? Tell us.

To think that Perry would have something to do with a National Archives Investigation is totally obscure.

Scott Perry, according to reports, is a material witness (at least) in the DOJ's investigation of the false elector plot.  Stefanik has not been connected with it at all.

However, discussion of Perry's phone confiscation is off-topic for this thread.  Take it to the Jan. 6 thread or start a separate one.

Wrong!
Perrys Phone confiscation has everything to do with Govtm Overreach and FBI Banana Scare Tactics and that's also being discussed in this Thread!

Watch out.... FBI BANANA SCARE TACTICS!!!!!

[Middle-aged Europe]

One thing is for sure: We are going to reign in Merrick "Craptastic" Garland if Republicans take over the House.

Well, if it is you personally who is on the case Garland won't have much to be afraid about, actually.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Why would he resign since there is zero chance he would be convicted.

To spare Biden an Embarrassment.

I am so confused right now...

TL;DR: 2016 is trying very hard to derail the thread.  Just ignore him.

2016 sounds like someone who is on crack right now, so I find him amusing rather than annoying at the moment tbh.

[Middle-aged Europe]

I mean I actually think it would be reckless for DOJ not to consider the political consequences of such a decision. Going after a former president is inherently political no matter what anyone says and that's why it should not happen other than the most serious of circumstances.

I do not agree with your belief that the President should be above the law except under extreme circumstances.

The real world isn’t a high school civics class and the fact is it also would result in many many other members of previous administrations being potentially prosecuted given that technically our foreign policy since 1945 probably has resulted in laws being broken by multiple administrators.

Like I said I don’t think Eisenhower or Nixon should have been prosecuted for Their use of the CIA , LBJ for Gulf of Tonkin lie , Reagan/Bush for Iran Contra , W for Guantanamo Bay , Obama for how he used drones etc .

I for one am hoping for a "real world" that is still subject to the rule of law though.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Like Fuzzy when you guys realize that 2016 argues in bad faith and isn’t worth the effort it will save time

Unlike Fuzzy, 2016 amuses me.

[Middle-aged Europe]

Christopher Wray, the director of the FBI, is a Trump appointee.   How does this play into the "suspicious timing" of the raid?    Why would Wray take part in a political hitjob on Trump?   Does this really make any sense?

According to the Fuzzy Bear, Chris Wray was "forced upon" Trump by unspecified dark forces, although that doesn't mean that Trump wasn't a weak figurehead president in any way, because Trump also managed to make Atlas users angry at the same time.

[Middle-aged Europe]

I googled Mar-a-Lago-gate but all I got was pictures of the front gate there.

And it is such a big, beautiful gate with a very nice wall adjacent to it.

[Middle-aged Europe]

According to the WSJ, Trump has become his own advisor. This can only end poorly for him.

DA: Mr. President, did you take the nuclear documents?

Judge: You don't have to answer that question!

Trump: I'll answer the question! ... You want answers?

DA: I think I'm entitled to.

Trump: You want answers?

DA: I WANT THE TRUTH!

Trump: YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!

Son, we live in a world that has big beautiful walls, and those walls have to be guarded by Second Amendment people. Who's gonna do it? Sleepy Joe? That turtle McConnell? I have a greater responsibility than you could possibly fathom. You weep for Hillary and you curse the MAGA movement. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know; that Hillary's defeat, while tragicomic, probably saved white lives. And my existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, *saves white lives*. You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about at parties, you want me on that big beautiful wall. You need me on that big beautiful wall. We use words like swamp, Deep State, stolen election. We use these words as the backbone of a life spent defending something. You use them as a punchline. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom that I provide, and then questions the manner in which I provide it! I would rather you just said "thank you" and went on your way, Otherwise, I suggest you create a Truth Social account and stand a post. Either way, I don't give a *damn* what you think you are entitled to!

DA: Did you take the nuclear documents?

Trump: I did the job I...

DA: *Did you take the nuclear documents?*

Trump: *You're God damn right I did!*