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

[GeorgiaModerate]

Summary of the latest developments in one tweet:

https://twitter.com/AshaRangappa_/status/1561884705427013632

[emailking]

Does CI mean counter intelligence?

[GeorgiaModerate]

Does CI mean counter intelligence?

That's probably the meaning in this context.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

The gang of right wants those Garland search records for Mara Largo we have no clue on what Garland is doing no grand jury empaneled or Crt filings or charges filed he needs to let Congress know the status of criminal investigation

[Torie]

Here is this morning's NYT dose of info on the life and times of documents at MAL of interest:

"On June 22, the Justice Department subpoenaed the Trump Organization for Mar-a-Lago’s security footage, which included a well-trafficked hallway outside the storage area, the people said.

'The club had surveillance footage going back 60 days for some areas of the property, stretching back to late April of this year.

'While much of the footage showed hours of club employees walking through the busy corridor, some of it raised concerns for investigators, according to people familiar with the matter. It revealed people moving boxes in and out, and in some cases, appearing to change the containers some documents were held in. The footage also showed other parts of the property.
In seeking a second round of security footage, the Justice Department wants to review tapes for the weeks leading up to the Aug. 8 search.
…

'The F.B.I. agents who conducted the search found the additional documents in the storage area in the basement of Mar-a-Lago, as well as in a container in a closet in Mr. Trump’s office, the people said."

The attorney who signed the doc stated that she had gone through all the documents in the storage room, and all the ones that had classified markings were being returned in June. Yet the FBI found more per the search warrant in the storage room. Was the attorney careless, or were the documents just not there when the attorney went though them, and they found there way back after her visit but before the FBI's surprise visit?  I suspect all of those on tape entering the storage room in the hiatus period between the Trump lawyer's visit and the FBI visit have had been contacted by the DOJ.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

I wonder how Trump gets himself out of this predicament.

[Sir Mohamed]

I wonder how Trump gets himself out of this predicament.

Deny and deflect, how he so often got out.

I've become more skeptical that anything just finishes him off entirely. Because it should have happened hundreds of times and still didn't.

[Fmr. Pres. Duke]

I wonder how Trump gets himself out of this predicament.

Deny and deflect, how he so often got out.

I've become more skeptical that anything just finishes him off entirely. Because it should have happened hundreds of times and still didn't.

Right. If I was a betting man, I'd bet that nothing comes of any of this - J6, the FBI raid, his tax evasion lawsuit in NY, or the GA election probe.

[Torie]

I wonder how Trump gets himself out of this predicament.

Deny and deflect, how he so often got out.

I've become more skeptical that anything just finishes him off entirely. Because it should have happened hundreds of times and still didn't.

Right. If I was a betting man, I'd bet that nothing comes of any of this - J6, the FBI raid, his tax evasion lawsuit in NY, or the GA election probe.

Trump not getting indicted on MAL is close to a nightmare scenario.

Question to Garland. Are you going to indict Trump over MAL? No comment. When are you going to make a decision? No comment? Now that you have all the documents, are you not in a position to make a decision as to the crimes that were listed in the warrant? No comment. Garland, it has been six months now, do you just plan to let the statute of limitations expire with no comment in the interim? Is that the plan? No comment.

In an exchange that happens every week on the NYT between a never Trumper right of center guy, and a Dem, as the never-Trumper put it, it is nice for the government to get the docs back, but if it elects Trump POTUS again, the price is just too damn high. I could not have said it better myself.

[emailking]

It's going to be next year probably before there's any indictment from this, if that happens. The filter team still has the documents so they don't even know what their evidence is yet.

[President Johnson]

It's going to be next year probably before there's any indictment from this, if that happens. The filter team still has the documents so they don't even know what their evidence is yet.

And then they may refrain from it because he's a presidential candidate? And a potentially looming indictment fires up his base and allows him to pose as a victim again? Good lord, just indict him already.

[LBJer]

I wonder how Trump gets himself out of this predicament.

Deny and deflect, how he so often got out.

I've become more skeptical that anything just finishes him off entirely. Because it should have happened hundreds of times and still didn't.

There's always a first time for everything.  In 1960 the idea that a president would ever have to resign in disgrace would have been dismissed as ridiculous.  

Also, it's rather misleading to talk of "hundreds of times" given that Trump's actions since the aftermath of the 2020 election have dwarfed in seriousness most of his previous misdeeds.  

[OSR stands with Israel]

It's going to be next year probably before there's any indictment from this, if that happens. The filter team still has the documents so they don't even know what their evidence is yet.

And then they may refrain from it because he's a presidential candidate? And a potentially looming indictment fires up his base and allows him to pose as a victim again? Good lord, just indict him already.

In fact an indictment very well could actually reduce the chances of him running due to the pardon power of a president

[LBJer]

There's also the fact that even if Trump isn't prosecuted, the revelations that have come out and continue to come out will likely (it makes me very nervous saying this, given the consequences of being proven wrong, but I nevertheless believe it) make it impossible for him to win the 2024 election, even if he is nominated. 

[GeorgiaModerate]

I'll predict that this one will lead to Trump being indicted, although not before the end of this year.  This is a straightforward crime that the government routinely prosecutes successfully, and the information that has come out so far looks extremely damning for Trump.

[emailking]

It's going to be next year probably before there's any indictment from this, if that happens. The filter team still has the documents so they don't even know what their evidence is yet.

And then they may refrain from it because he's a presidential candidate? And a potentially looming indictment fires up his base and allows him to pose as a victim again? Good lord, just indict him already.

In fact an indictment very well could actually reduce the chances of him running due to the pardon power of a president

What do you mean? That there may be a deal for a pardon if he won't run?

[OSR stands with Israel]

It's going to be next year probably before there's any indictment from this, if that happens. The filter team still has the documents so they don't even know what their evidence is yet.

And then they may refrain from it because he's a presidential candidate? And a potentially looming indictment fires up his base and allows him to pose as a victim again? Good lord, just indict him already.

In fact an indictment very well could actually reduce the chances of him running due to the pardon power of a president

What do you mean? That there may be a deal for a pardon if he won't run?

I mean yah theoretically Biden could promise that he’d pardon him in December of 2024 if he doesn’t run .

[H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY]

I'll predict that this one will lead to Trump being indicted, although not before the end of this year.  This is a straightforward crime that the government routinely prosecutes successfully, and the information that has come out so far looks extremely damning for Trump.

Yeah, they can’t really unring the bell now. His house was raided by the FBI and Garland said he personally approved it on national TV. They can’t exactly back down unless they for whatever reason think they don’t have evidence.

[ProudModerate2]

I wonder how Trump gets himself out of this predicament.

Deny and deflect, how he so often got out.
I've become more skeptical that anything just finishes him off entirely. Because it should have happened hundreds of times and still didn't.

Right. If I was a betting man, I'd bet that nothing comes of any of this - J6, the FBI raid, his tax evasion lawsuit in NY, or the GA election probe.

If you were a betting man, I believe you would have said that there would be zero chance of the Feds raiding Mar-a-Lago with a search warrant.
And you would have lost.
So don't count those others items you listed as "nothing comes" from them.

[GeorgiaModerate]

It's going to be next year probably before there's any indictment from this, if that happens. The filter team still has the documents so they don't even know what their evidence is yet.

And then they may refrain from it because he's a presidential candidate? And a potentially looming indictment fires up his base and allows him to pose as a victim again? Good lord, just indict him already.

In fact an indictment very well could actually reduce the chances of him running due to the pardon power of a president

What do you mean? That there may be a deal for a pardon if he won't run?

I mean yah theoretically Biden could promise that he’d pardon him in December of 2024 if he doesn’t run .

Theoretically, perhaps.  Practically?  There's zero chance that Biden would make such a bargain.

[Torie]

I'll predict that this one will lead to Trump being indicted, although not before the end of this year.  This is a straightforward crime that the government routinely prosecutes successfully, and the information that has come out so far looks extremely damning for Trump.

Would you make that prediction if the docs stamped security sensitive are just not that shocking  to the conscience for Trump to have? In reality, I think that if all Trump has that he should not have, prosecuting him while technically valid, might be viewed as an abuse of prosecutorial discretion, particularly against a POTUS, and I have read that well outside Trump world sources. I say that as one who thinks the issuance of the warrant was justified. It all depends on what is found.

I certainly hope for our country, and indeed the world, that Garland has the requisite goods now.

The whole thing is just crazy and surreal. That is what Trump has wrought.

[H.E. VOLODYMYR ZELENKSYY]

I'll predict that this one will lead to Trump being indicted, although not before the end of this year.  This is a straightforward crime that the government routinely prosecutes successfully, and the information that has come out so far looks extremely damning for Trump.

Would you make that prediction if the docs stamped security sensitive are just not that shocking  to the conscience for Trump to have? In reality, I think that if all Trump has that he should not have, prosecuting him while technically valid, might be viewed as an abuse of prosecutorial discretion, particularly against a POTUS, and I have read that well outside Trump world sources. I say that as one who thinks the issuance of the warrant was justified. It all depends on what is found.

I certainly hope for our country, and indeed the world, that Garland has the requisite goods now.

The whole thing is just crazy and surreal. That is what Trump has wrought.

What do you think of the reports that he had nuclear weapons-level documents?

[OSR stands with Israel]

It's going to be next year probably before there's any indictment from this, if that happens. The filter team still has the documents so they don't even know what their evidence is yet.

And then they may refrain from it because he's a presidential candidate? And a potentially looming indictment fires up his base and allows him to pose as a victim again? Good lord, just indict him already.

In fact an indictment very well could actually reduce the chances of him running due to the pardon power of a president

What do you mean? That there may be a deal for a pardon if he won't run?

I mean yah theoretically Biden could promise that he’d pardon him in December of 2024 if he doesn’t run .

Theoretically, perhaps.  Practically?  There's zero chance that Biden would make such a bargain.

Well the pardon wouldn’t be given out till after the election so Trump couldn’t back out

[Torie]

I'll predict that this one will lead to Trump being indicted, although not before the end of this year.  This is a straightforward crime that the government routinely prosecutes successfully, and the information that has come out so far looks extremely damning for Trump.

Would you make that prediction if the docs stamped security sensitive are just not that shocking  to the conscience for Trump to have? In reality, I think that if all Trump has that he should not have, prosecuting him while technically valid, might be viewed as an abuse of prosecutorial discretion, particularly against a POTUS, and I have read that well outside Trump world sources. I say that as one who thinks the issuance of the warrant was justified. It all depends on what is found.

I certainly hope for our country, and indeed the world, that Garland has the requisite goods now.

The whole thing is just crazy and surreal. That is what Trump has wrought.

What do you think of the reports that he had nuclear weapons-level documents?

If those documents getting into the wrong hands would be a disaster, then that would be a relief. But I have not read any more leaks on that, and the leaks we had as to that may not be that reliable if whoever leaked had not seen and understood the documents.

What would really be a disaster is if Trump is indicted and while he technically committed crimes, once we know what was in the documents, it turns out it does not shock the conscience that much. At that point there will be a firestorm and Trump will be reanimated the way darkness does for Dracula. I hope I am wrong of course, and I don't want to sound like a doomer, and replace the one we already have. Insert hands in prayer symbol here.

Oh, not ideal, but far better than just more technical violations, would be solid evidence that Trump was actively involved in hiding documents, you know like removing them from storage while his lawyers looked at them and then putting them back. I want to see a video of Trump carrying a box out of the storage room before his lawyer wandered in, and then putting it back after his lawyer left. Was Trump ever in MAL between June and the warrant search?

[Inmate Trump]

What are the chances an indictment bars or otherwise keeps Trump from running again?