A spokesman and a lawyer for former President Donald Trump have responded to an unnamed source cited by the Washington Post as claiming that a document outlining a foreign government's nuclear capabilities was discovered during an FBI raid on Trump's home last month.
"The Washington Post continues to serve as the propaganda arm of the Biden administration, and instead of operating openly and honestly, they conspire in endless leaks and lies to the detriment of the integrity of the FBI and Justice Department," wrote Taylor Budowich. Twitter in reference to the Washington Post article.
The Post article did not specify the nature of the documents and claimed that "several senior national security officials are being kept in the dark about them."
Throughout his presidency Trump , media outlets such as the New York Times, CNN, NBC, and the Washington Post frequently published articles about his presidency, citing anonymous sources. Trump often derided these reports and the media as "fake news."
The former president said those media colluded with some federal agents who sought to undermine his presidency and re-election campaign, specifically with allegations that he colluded with Russia to win the 2016 election.
It was later determined by former special counsel Robert Mueller that there was no evidence that Trump colluded with Moscow. A subsequent investigation by the DOJ's inspector general found in December 2019 that significant errors and omissions were made when the DOJ and the FBI pressed for surveillance of former Trump aide Carter Page as part of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation.
After the Aug. 8 raid, Trump and members of his team, including former national security aide Kash Patel, said the 45th president had declassified a number of materials during his final months in office.
Leaks
On Wednesday, the former president's lawyer accused the Department of Justice (DOJ) of continually leaking information about the Mar-a-Lago investigation to the mainstream media.
"Unfortunately, even after the Court specifically noted in its order that President Trump 'faces an immeasurable potential harm through the improper disclosure of sensitive information to the public' and requested a United States attorney directly regarding the leaks, these leaks continue without respect. for the process nor for any consideration of the actual truth," Chris Kise said in a statement to news outlets.
And Trump's team argued last month in court filings that a special master — or neutral, third party — should be appointed to review the materials taken from Trump's Florida residence. Judge Aileen Cannon granted Trump's request on September 5 and argued that there is a risk of media leaks that could harm Trump.
Cannon he also emphasized that his raid FBI targeting Mar-a-Lago was unprecedented in US history.
"In connection with Plaintiff's past position as President of the United States, the stigma associated with the seizure of the subject matter is of its own," the judge wrote Monday. "A future indictment, based in any degree on assets that should be returned, would result in reputational damage of a distinctly different order of magnitude."
Following Cannon's decision, a Justice Department spokesman issued a statement saying the agency is now considering its options. The Justice Department had previously argued against appointing a special master and said it would impede his investigation of the former president.
Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
