Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certification

Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Mon Sep 05, 2022 2:28 am

Part 2 of 2

We created the border in United States history. We ended catch and release, we deported record numbers of illegal aliens, gang members, and we built hundreds and hundreds of miles of border wall. In two and a half years of Democrat-inspired losses, we're delivered lawsuits. I want every one of them, look, two and a half years that went. And you know, we completely finished our original plan for the wall and they came to me for some other sections. They said, "Let's do it. Come on. Let's go fast." Then we added much more wall, 200 miles, and we almost got that finished on top of what we did. And I figured that this guy would finish it up. And he didn't!

Not only didn't finish when Texas wanted to use the stuff that was sitting there ready to be erected, it was going to be erected very quickly. Very quickly. very effectively. Great, great wall. It's actually what Border Patrol wanted. I said what do you want? This is exactly what, steel. They wanted concrete. They wanted rebar, heavy set rebar. They wanted exactly that, and they have to be able to see through, so we see what's happening on the other side.

I want to just give a nice big beautiful concrete plank but they didn't want that. So we gave them exactly what they wanted. And this could have been finished in a few weeks. And not only didn't they give this free to Texas, Texas could have put it up. They actually took it away, and put it in a secure area. And nobody can take it. That's just a terrible thing. Three weeks was all it would have taken to complete the job.

Our country is paying a terrible price for the rigged election. I ran twice. I won twice and did much better the second time than I did the first, getting millions and millions more votes in 2020 than we got in 2016.

Doug knows that we got millions of more votes. I tell people, yeah. Oh, what a great job you did. I was being interviewed by this fake news reporter. And he said what happened in 2020? I said, Well, we did much better actually. We got New Orleans, more votes, we get the largest number of votes of any sitting president in history. They said, "You know, I never thought of it that way." I said why don't you start thinking about that way. Got a rigged election. And likewise getting more votes than, think of it, there has never been a person as the sitting president got anywhere near. I think we got like 10 million more votes than Obama. You know, so popular.

He's so popular. They say he's so handsome. Oh, Obama is such a great speaker. What does he say? He says nothing. And we're leading Biden, and everyone else including the Republicans, by record numbers in the polls. So I may just have to do it again. You'll be starting to have to do it again. Do it again. Have to do it again.

But first, we have to win a historic victory for the Republican Party this November.

Among our highest priorities must be to end the nightmare Joe Biden and congressional Democrats have created on our southern border, that nightmare.

Remember this, we had the strongest, best border we ever had two years ago. Now we have the worst border. I believe it's worse than any border anywhere in the world. Because no country would let people come into the country the way we have. Right here in Pennsylvania, last year two illegal alien criminals allegedly brutalized and bludgeoned women to death. On a busy street corner in Chester County and illegal alien stands accused of grabbing a 33 year old woman by the hair, pulling her down and around the ground and stabbing her to death in front of her 7-year-old daughter.

Just a few weeks ago, an illegal alien murderer was charged with shooting to death a 76-year-old man from Pennsylvania. He took a walk every morning and this guy killed him for no reason whatsoever. He didn't know, he didn't know him, didn't do anything. Just wanted to kill him.

The radical Democrat Congresses turned our country into one giant sanctuary for serious criminal aliens. We protect all of the criminals, we don't protect our own people. In fact, they raid our people.
And the Republican Party. We believe our country should be a sanctuary for law abiding citizens who love America. If we're going to make America great again, our first pass is to make America safe again. We have to have a safe country.

You know, I told you before, I love the fields, but I like these better because of the air conditioning system, but that conditioning is not working too well. It's about 100 degrees up here. I'm sweating like a dog but I'm cold. Dr. Oz? Dr. Oz.? Am I okay Doctor? Am I okay? He says yes. I was in Arizona for his show years ago and Dr. Oz, in a second, but I was at a show years ago and he did like an examination of me—I don't know what the hell they did the show for, I wasn't like even a politician at that. But he did an examination, and the word he said is extremely healthy. Very, very fine, fit man but he should lose 20 or 25 pounds. I was so angry. I didn't speak to him. He said he was great but he could lose a couple of pounds.

He's great. He's gonna be great.

Under a Democrat, all the streets of our great cities are drenched in the blood of innocent victims. Much of this crime is caused by drug dealers, who during the course of their lives will kill an average of 500 a month. Citizens, every drug dealer is responsible. And that doesn't include what they've done to families of people that haven't died, but families that are just devastated by what happened to their children and to themselves. Think of it, 500 people the average drug dealer kills. I'm calling for the death penalty for drug dealers which will upon stashes reduce drug distribution in our country on day one by 75 percent.

No more blue ribbon committees. What to do, you know, I was setting them up in the White House, is a blue ribbon committee headed by socialites, and they just want—I mean, look, they're very nice people, but they just want a little publicity for themselves. They can't deal with the kind of killers that would—We want the death penalty for drug dealers, and you will save millions of lives. You know, we're gonna lose 250,000 people I think this year, you know, just to go off for a second. Does anybody mind that? I do that.

Is there any perfect place to be on a beautiful Saturday evening than a Trump rally?

But just to go for a second. So you know, I got to know a lot of the foreign leaders and let me tell you, unlike our leader, they're at the top of their game. There's no one in like Central Casting that could play the role in Hollywood, all of Hollywood. Nobody can play the role of President Xi of China. Nobody could play the role. He's a fierce person. Putin, fierce, is smart. You know, a lot of times I'll say somebody's smart, and the fake news go, he thought President Xi smart.

He rules with an iron fist 1.5 billion people. Yeah, I'd say he's smart, wouldn't you say he's smart? So I'm with President Xi. And I got along with him to work. I mean, once COVID is yourself, but we made a great trade deal with him, helped our farmers, helped our manufacturers, but I'm with him. And I really had a great relationship with him. And then I asked him a question I said, "President," he's president for life, by the way, like thinking as a king. He said, "but I am not a king." I said, "You are to me, you're president for life. It's the same."

You will be very soon, you know that—another thing by the way. Do you notice a lot of ships are circling Taiwan. That wouldn't have happened either, by the way. But I said, "President could I ask you a very simple question. Do you have a drug problem?" He looked at me like, what's wrong with that? "No, of course not." He goes, "No, no." He's like, "What the hell of a stupid question it is. No."

I said you don't have a drug problem with 1.5 million people. His big problems, they make the drugs, he sent them into our country. That's their problem. That would have been their problem and he was stopping it too. But now they're sending the fentanyl in numbers that you wouldn't believe, wouldn't believe it, pouring through that portal. At numbers you wouldn't believe, I had him very close to stopped. He couldn't do it. "So President, President, you don't have a drug problem, but why? But why don't you have a drug problem?"

"We have quick trial. It's a what is it quick. We immediately catch the drug dealer. We give him quick trial. And if he is guilty, which I would say probably,"
Would you say, Oz, would you say they're getting 100 percent? Or only 99?

"If the drug dealer is guilty, he is immediately executed. So we have no drug problem." And they have other countries like that to Singapore, other countries. And if you do that, you know, I'm told this and it's a hard thing to say, because calling for the death penalty stuff, but think of it.

They kill 500 people during a lot of time, and I think it's much worse than that. I think that's only what we hear about who would stop it. If you didn't get it down, 75 percent. Person said from day one, I'd be surprised and these committees that they set up, it's laughable, it's a horrible thing. We would solve that problem so fast and I'm calling on Republicans and Democrats immediately to institute to get to 10, and institute the death penalty for drug dealers. You will no longer have a problem.

Philadelphia has become, as you heard many times over the last short period of time, worse than it's ever been. It's become a killing field a few days ago. A 4-year-old boy was shot while getting a haircut. For his first day in school. His mother was so proud of him, is getting a hug. He was shot.

Recently, a mother was shot in the head and horribly murdered, her unborn baby was miraculously saved. Under a Republican Congress. We should pass emergency funding to hire thousands and thousands more police officers nationwide to put violent criminals behind bars and keep them behind bars and also leave our police alone to do their job.

Give them back the respect, they know what to do and nobody can do it better but they're under siege.
They don't want to lose their house. They don't want to lose their families. What they do to police officers. What they do to police. You're always gonna have some bad apples, but they're very few and we have a country that's become one of the most unsafe countries in the world.

Think of it, you're gonna deal with third world nations where they're much safer than many parts. Think of it. what I said in Afghanistan, we didn't lose one soldier in 18 months. And yet I just read off numbers in Philadelphia. If you look at Atlanta, I have a district attorney in Atlanta, she's asking for a perfect phone call. And yet, it's even worse proportionately than Chicago for killing.

But the district attorney, Trump made a phone call, because he was challenging the election. So they're after me for perfect—by the way, perfect for you. Be very proud of me. Just like the call to Ukraine was a perfect call. The one in Atlanta was a perfect, perfect call and yet Atlanta is even worse than Chicago. Proportionately restoring safety. Market starts with defeating the Democratic stream. It's right here in Pennsylvania, your state's radical Democrat candidate for Senate. John Fetterman is the most dangerous Democrat.

He's the most dangerous Democrat.

He came to join Congress this year and one of the most fringe far-left freak shows ever to seek election for any offense [office?]
, at any stage and I've watched them over the last couple of years. And I said, "You gotta be kidding."

Actually I saw Conor Lamb, I don't know, kind of be a decent politician, you know he can't pay into the sort of middle Democrat area and he was doing commercials that was so good for me, the people thought that he was a Republican. I like Conor Lamb.

But Fetterman got it. He got it in a landslide. And this guy is a disaster. He comes in with a sweat suit on, I've never seen him wear a suit. A dirty dirty, dirty sweat suit. It's really disgusting. You know, I'm a clean freak. I'm a clean freak, Oz, I don't like those dirty sweat suits that disgusting.

Fetterman may dress like a teenager getting high in his parents basement. But he's a raging lunatic, hell bent on springing hardened criminals out of jail in the middle of the worst crime wave in Pennsylvania history. He wants everybody out of jail.

And, by the way, he wants to get rid of the police. Fetterman is a defund the police Marxist who's just pulling the wool over people's eyes, who literally said that if he had a magic wand and could fix one thing, he would end life sentences without parole for murderers, cop killers, rapists and other monsters. Criminals. That's what he said.

He wants him to get them out of jail.

Get addicts? Yeah, let's put Trump in jail. Let's get these murderers, let these murderers out, put Trump in jail. That Trump is no damn good. He has worked his ass off for this country through his position on the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons. Fetterman has released a record number of dangerous criminals, back on the streets, many of which have created horrible just atrocious crimes. He supports setting loose one out of every three inmates in your prisons. And he bragged that his goal is to get as many criminals out onto the street as quickly as possible.

Fetterman supports taxpayer-funded drug dens and the complete decriminalization of illegal drugs including heroin, cocaine, crystal meth, and ultra-lethal fentanyl, and by the way, he takes them himself—which would mean death and despair for every community in Pennsylvania and every community in the United States of America.

Compare that to President Xi of China, a little different, wouldn't you say? Fetterman openly supports deadly sanctuary cities and he signed a pledge to ban fracking which would demolish almost a million jobs in Pennsylvania.
I told them, I told you they were going to do that Pennsylvania, well you did listen to because I won Pennsylvania by a lot.

I can only hold accountable the people that counted the votes. Did you ever hear the statement by, I believe it was Lenin, did anyone ever hear of—many people would say it with less sophistication, Lenin. Lenin, I like the way they say that. Where he said the vote-counter is far more important than the candidate, well that turned out to be true. The vote-counter is far more important than the candidate, said by Lenin.

And while Fetterman wants to raise your taxes, he is a spoiled and entitled socialist loser who leached off his parents' money, you know he lives on the parents money until he was 49 years old. And on top of it all, he's too cowardly to even show up and debate.
A very nice man. Nice. He's very nice, and you'll treat him nicely, right?

Because he knows that his positions are totally indefensible, and in all fairness, you need to be out there and just ripping it for you, otherwise you're going to lose out to all the other southerners that are going to bring back money to the states, et cetera. And as we'll do it.

Fetterman is running against a man I've known for many years. I told you I had a real problem with him when he said I was a little heavy. I didn't like that. And of course it was wrong, was he wrong? And who is with our MAGA movement all the way. he's with us all the way. And you know, some people thought that, "Oh gee, maybe it was a little bit of a controversial thing," but I know him very well. And he's a guy that gets it done. He's a good person, and his wife is a fantastic person, I think I like her even more than I like him, Lisa.

So I'd like to ask Dr. Oz to step forward and say a few words. He's been an incredibly successful man on television, in medicine. He knows what's happening, and he's going to work and fight for Pennsylvania. Thank you.

Dr. Oz: Pennsylvania, we have one question, one important question we have to answer by November 8. Are you ready for it? Is the country headed in the right direction? If your friends say "Yes," take away their car keys. They should not be driving in that condition, people should stay home. But if the answer is no, we've got a big problem. This country has dramatically turned in the wrong direction. I'm the person for change.

I'll make the change based on our family values here in Pennsylvania, because I believe in the American dream, I am part of the American dream. My whole life has been about hard work, and earning, and supporting kids because that's what Americans do. I believe we can make safe city streets and communities. I believe we can have a secure border and allow legal immigration but not the fentanyl brought by traffickers bringing human beings and fentanyl from China which took 100,000 lives last year.

And I know people just aren't hurt by fentanyl. I believe we can have an economy that hurts the American people but most importantly, I believe in each and every one of you and so should you. God bless you.

Donald Trump: We have a great record of endorsement, all of us together. Very close to 90 percent. And I endorsed that guy and I'm telling you, I will always tell you this. I'll tell you the truth and he's going to be a phenomenal representative for Pennsylvania. You gotta vote him and you got to vote.

Great guy. And Lisa, thank you very much. Thank you very much for what you have to put up with, Lisa. Thank you very much. You know they spent, just so you know, they spent like $50 million trying to destroy that man. $50 million. Like it was water. And they didn't come close. This guy is tough and he's strong and he loves us.

This November, you also have to defeat the far left Democrat candidate for governor, Little Josh Shapiro—who is so much like Fetterman, other than he's about half his height which is fine. It's fine. I would say it's absolutely fine as we don't want to tell height jokes. Not here to tell any jokes today. Not weight jokes, not height jokes. I've got them all covered.

But he is a disaster for the state. He's the one that kept saying "Oh, after" after it came out that we have a great man running against him. "Oh, that's the man I wanted to run against." No it's not. Because that's the man that had a base like I do. He has a base that's so powerful and so strong. He doesn't want to run again. As attorney general, he presided over the complete disintegration of law and order and letting things and criminals run wild.

Look at the numbers I just talked to you about in Philadelphia. Well, he's the guy who knows those numbers are getting worse. There is nothing to stop these animals from continuing, those numbers are gonna get worse, if that's possible. It's not even—you would think it's not possible.

Shapiro supports sanctuary cities, and he sided with Marxist anti-American BLM radicals and Antifa, and he's a vicious hater of free speech and a hater of your Second Amendment. So he's gonna let criminals roam your streets, and he's not gonna let you have a gun to protect yourself. Shapiro is also using his office to shut children's schools and force masks to be strapped to your children's faces, doing unimaginable harm.

And like Fetterman, Shapiro is a pro-abortion extremist who supports totally unrestricted abortion on demand. Right through the ninth month.
Think of this and you know where I am. You know where I am, the exceptions, I believe in the exceptions. He supports it the right through the ninth month and beyond. You know what beyond means, after the baby is born, after the baby is born. So as I said in my debate with Crooked Hillary Clinton, rip the baby out of the womb at anytime, and if the baby's already out of the womb, he's there too. "Just talk to the doctor."

Now you don't want that. States will make the decision by the way, the states will make the decision and in Pennsylvania, I have a feeling that decision will be an interesting decision, but it's up to the states and that's the way it was always supposed to be. But he wants to let things happen that no civilized person would allow. They don't allow it in other countries.

No Pennsylvanian should listen to one word on abortion from these two twisted sickos who believe in killing and dismembering babies right up until that that time that time of birth.
Shapiro is running against an incredible patriot and a fearless warrior for Pennsylvania workers and Pennsylvania values. Doug Mastriano, who has been with me right from the beginning, I mean right from the beginning. I remember that. They all wanted my endorsement. They all ran.

I know you had the U.S. attorney, nice guy. He was a nice guy, but he didn't do anything in terms of the election fraud. "No, there was no problem in Pennsylvania, there was no problem." There was massive problems. And then he wants to run, he said, "Sir, Bill Barr would not let me go after anybody. He wouldn't let me touch anybody." What a shame what an opportunity, but he wanted to run. Others wanted to run.

I said the one guy that supported election integrity and supported me right from the beginning. Is Doug Mastriano. One day he came to the White House with a whole group of people. He brought them and he was working like hell, it was really an uphill battle because you had the Democrats. They didn't want to hear anything. And then you had some bad RINOs that just—somebody, someday, somebody's going to explain the RINOs. Why are they doing it?

But Doug is a former Army colonel who honorably served our country in uniform for 30 years before going on to fight for you. In the State Senate, he became the most respected person in the Senate and definitely the hardest fighter. He was the relentless person out there fighting against lockdowns and COVID mandates. He didn't want to destroy real Americans, he got it long before the so-called doctors who weren't very good, and a true champion for election integrity and tough as hell on a thing called illegal immigration.

We want people to come into our country legally. As your governor, he will back down from nobody, he'll back down those violent criminals and crack down on violent crime and COVID mandates, protect Pennsylvania oil and gas workers, which right now—enjoy your job for another couple of months, because you're not gonna have it longer.

And defend your jobs, your rights and your freedoms. Doug is joined by an incredible person who I also got to know because we were in a real fight with a lot of really sick, bad people. Rebby, thank you very much. Thank you, stand up. And she was a big part. She's a great partner to a man that will be one of the greatest governors in this country. Doug, please come up. Please come up.

Doug Mastriano: Oh, yeah. Thank you, Mr. President. Philadelphia loves you and America needs you. Thank you for your leadership.

Thank you for paving the way for people like me and everyone you see out here to fight for freedom. Thank you for taking the shots. And standing boldly and leading by example, Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania is the Keystone State. On 8 November, we're taking our state back by storm. That's right. We're gonna do it. We're gonna do it. We're gonna be the state where people want to come to raise their families, to succeed in business on day one. We're out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. We're gonna drill and dig like no tomorrow. That's right. That's right. We're gonna do it. Oh, yeah.

On day one, we're no longer a sanctuary state. So Joe Biden can have these illegals, we'll drop them off at his beach house where he spends all his time anyway. You can have them on day one. We're gonna have the backs of law enforcement on day one, there's no more mask requirement or COVID jab requirement. That's right.

We're gonna walk like free people like never before, Pennsylvania. This is where the light of liberty was lit in 1776, a new birth of freedom in 1863. And something very near and dear to both of our hearts: We're going to fight like hell for voting integrity, and we're going to start with voter ID. That's right. That's right.

The left, my opponent, is too dangerous, too extreme and too radical. When he can't even define what a woman is, then the guy is nuts. Pennsylvania is less safe with his six year record of failure as attorney general that all ends on 8 November. Pennsylvania, the key to our nation starts with us. And let's not forget that on September 11, 2001, and you are a champion on 9/11/2001, Mr. President, and he was. We saw him at the World Trade Center. Meanwhile, Flight 93 over Somerset County, the terrorists had it. Todd Beamer and other people on that flight took action. What did they say?

Pennsylvania, let's roll!

Donald Trump: You know, Doug said a lot in a few short sentences. One of the things he mentioned was voter ID. The Democrats don't want voter ID. Actually it's interesting. The leadership, the people want it, 91 percent Democrats, but the leaders don't want voter ID, OK. I think the only reason you don't want voter ID, there's only one reason because you want it cheap, right. That's the only reason.

When you had the Democrat National Convention, the last one, they had signs, and the biggest signs, they were like billboards, pictures, fingerprints, everything. You couldn't get in. But the greatest thing happened over the last few days, Starbucks, this guy Schultz. The one with the extremely thin legs. I think maybe Dr. Oz would have said he's either really good or very, very, very thin. But he was doing a debate. He was sitting down, I thought his legs—I didn't think he'd be able to stand up. But Schultz, he's the head of it.

But he just announced unions are trying to take over stuff. But he will not under any circumstance allow mail-in voting because it's evil and corrupt. And the process can be corrupted. And yet when he was running for president for about three days before he realized he couldn't do it, took him about two days. But when he was running for president, he was talking about mail-in ballots. Now that he's got his company that he's got a nice piece of, he wants nothing to do with voting by mail-in ballots for unions, because he says you can't get their vote, and it's easily corruptible.

When are people going to get smart, and get rid of this mail-in voting in Pennsylvania, killing our country. You'll do it. We're also joined tonight by the next congressman from Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district. Jim Bognet. Jim, thank you very much. Good luck. I hear you doing well, these two guys are gonna help you a lot. Thank you, Jim. Great job.

So Jim's running against radical Democrat socialist Matt Cartwright. That's another beauty. Who said he's all on board for the Green New Deal. Greatest waste of money in history. The Green New Deal, why don't you just throw the money right out the window. And he absolutely supports defunding the police and votes with Biden 100 percent of the time, so you know he can't be any good. Everybody get out and vote for Jim. Okay.

Also with us, our Pennsylvania treasurer, a very good person, good woman, Stacy Garrity. Hello, Stacy. Thank you, Stacy. Great job you're doing. Friend of mine—a warrior. Never laid down, always been their representative. Dan Meuser. Dan, thank you. Great job. Great job. Thank you. And also Fred Keller. Another warrior. Fred stand up, what a good guy. Thank you for all your help. He comes to our defense. He gets out there the two of them.

Now a woman is with us. She's very silent. Very shy. doesn't believe in using guns to protect yourself. Says anybody can come into my house anytime you'd like. No, no. She did a little ad I saw, her first time, and her ad was something to the effect. "Sure. Anybody can come into my house. He can be big," and she took this gun. I never saw anybody used this gun. Boom, put it back and she said, "But he might not get out of my house alive." And I said "I think I like her," Marjorie Taylor Greene.

A man I'm very proud of. He's got a tough race. But I'm very proud of this. You have a RINO governor in Maryland. His name is Larry Hogan. I think he wants to run for president. I think he wants to run for president, they said you got to look in the mirror first—it's not gonna work. Not gonna work. But he's a real RINO and he doesn't want this man because this is all for our country.

His name is Dan Cox. And he beat he beat Larry Hogan's candidate by like 20 points with my endorsement. With my endorsement, and he's doing fantastically Dan. Congratulations. And Larry Hogan—and this is my fault, I'm sorry, Dan—but Larry Hogan is not going to be supporting you only because I am supporting you. So I don't know what that means. But I can tell you that Maryland has a great, great man running and I hope you're going to do well and we'll be out there helping you.

Okay, thank you. I have a feeling you'll do very well. A friend of mine who's a great businessman and a great person, Mr. Woody Johnson and his wife, Suzanne Johnson. Where's Woody? Stand up, Woody! He's shy. They own a very small company named Johnson. Johnson, does anybody like Johnson? I want to own a piece of that company, too. Great job. We love your boss. And Cynthia Hughes and Gina Pernod with the Patriot Freedom Project. What a job they do. Where are you? Where are you, stand up for the job. And we all appreciate it. We all appreciate it.

With the help of everybody here today we are going to fight for Pennsylvania. We're going to win for Pennsylvania this November. One of the first things we will do is stand up for parents' rights. It's time to finally and completely break the radical local education cartel. Can you believe like 10 years ago, let's put yourself back, that somebody would stand up—I can't believe I'm calling myself a politician. But I guess I am. I don't know. I can't stand politicians.

But can you believe that 10 years ago—like put yourself in that position—a politician would be standing up saying we're going to defend parental rights? I mean, that's about as basic as it gets, but that's what we have to do because these people are crazy. Our children are captive to unhinged Marxist educators who are pushing inappropriate sexual, racial and political material on our children from the youngest possible age.

At long last, every parent in America must be empowered to opt out of the indoctrination and send their child to the public, private, charter, religious or home school of their choice. In addition, we will get critical race theory the hell out of our schools, out of our military and out of every part of our federal, state and local government, just like I did two years ago, it was out. We had it out, but they put it right back in.

We will also keep men out of women's sports. You know those stories that I tell? I love to tell those stories, the woman swimmers, I tell it again, should I, you want me to? Mr. Wall, stand up Wall, please. This is Mr. Irving Q. Wall, you know, it's so ridiculous. And you know, it's not politically correct, and a lot of people are afraid to talk about it, but I'm not—men in women sports.

So you have this swimmer, who's really—I met her the other day, very high quality swimmer and she's gonna break the record. She's worked like hell. She's worked all her life. The big meet is on and she looks to the left and she sees all of those great athletes that she's been fighting for years. She looks to the right, and she sees this massive human being, he's looking up, what is he, like 6'6" or something? He's got a wingspan bigger than Wilt Chamberlain. Wilt was small by comparison and she looked over, I've never seen her before. Anyway, she wanted to break that record she fought so hard to do. And the race started and as you know, she was severely injured. She was injured by windburn because he went by her so fast.

The wind burned the hell out of her.
And she didn't quite make it that day for the record. But he did. He broke the record by 38 seconds. You know, usually you break it by—she wants to break it by 1/8 of a second. But he was far better than her. He broke it by 38 seconds. That's one that no woman's ever gonna catch.

And then the better one is the weightlifter. You had a woman she's gonna lift the 213 pounds and that's a lot of weight. Do you think I could lift, Oz, you think I could lift 213 pounds and she got up and she was gonna break it. They put it half an ounce and a half an ounce and have these big barbells and dumbbells and she's up there and she pulls it up and she's gonna do it—couldn't do it too. So she was ashamed but she couldn't do it.

And then this person comes in you know, they actually call it—this is the correct term. A person in a man's body. That's what they call it. This is supposed to be politically correct. I hope it is. Otherwise they'll be very rude to me. The fake news will be very rude.

This guy walks up, they asked him before, did you lift? "No, not too much." And he gets up—ding—that was the end of that record. It's ridiculous. It's ridiculous. And no teacher should ever be allowed to teach transgender to our children without parental consent.

Another one of our highest priorities under a Republican Congress will be to stop left wing censorship and to restore free speech in America. We don't have free speech. Go out and sign up, by the way, for Truth Social. Anybody on Truth Social? It's hot. And it's much better than Twitter. You see what's going on with Twitter. Twitter's not doing so well. Frankly, if we didn't have Truth we wouldn't be able to get the word out like they do. We get the word out fast.

The Radical Left Democrat Party is not, in my opinion, a 50 percent party within our country. They're against God, guns, oil, law enforcement, voter ID, tax cuts, regulation cuts, the Constitution and they're against our founding fathers. But other than that, actually, they're quite good. The way they win is to cheat in elections. I really believe that. How can you be against all of those things and for some of the things that therefore and be considered a 50/50 party? I don't believe it.

They cheat like hell on elections all over the country, and they're really good at it. Everywhere the Republican Party has the chance, we must pass critical election integrity reforms, including Universal voter ID citizenship confirmation. No more fake drop boxes by Zuckerberg and these people, no private money pouring into local election offices. And ultimately, we need same day voting with only paper ballots. Same day voting. Same day paper.

France just had an election. Big country—35 million people. They had same day voting, all paper ballots. The election ended at 11 o'clock. They had the vote, that was it. Nobody walked away. Right here in Pennsylvania, Democrats are still trying hard to rig your elections.

Act 77 clearly violates your state Constitution encouraging widespread abuse of mail-in ballots, and your radical left state Supreme Court just violated the Constitution a second time by overturning a decision by an unbiased lower court.
Republicans in the state legislature need to get to work immediately to kill Act 77 by a state constitutional amendment, they have to do it immediately.

We are just two months away from the most important midterm election in American history. And we need a landslide so big that the radical left just cannot rig it. You know the more we win by, it gets harder, harder, harder, harder. They can cheat a lot but once you get to a certain level, it gets very hard. This is the year we're going to take back the House. We're going to take back the Senate, we're going to take back America. We'll take back America.

And in 2024, most importantly, we are going to take back our magnificent White House. Together we will fight for more jobs for Pennsylvania families, fair trade for Pennsylvania workers and more Pennsylvania factories forging more products stamped with those beautiful, beautiful words, "Made in the USA," right? Made in the USA.

We will shut down Biden's border disaster, reinstitute our strong Remain in Mexico policy. How good was that, Remain in Mexico? You think it was easy for me to get Remain in Mexico from Mexico, but I got it. I said "You don't give it to me, you're gonna pay big tariffs on your cars." "Oh, we'd love to give it to you." Strengthen the patriots of ICE and Border Patrol. They're patriots and they're great. We will again end catch and release. We will end chain migration, we will end the visa lottery and we will clamp down on illegal immigration. Just like we did less than two years ago when we had the most secure border in our country's history.

We will stop the crime wave in Democrat-run cities, we will give our police the power they need and the respect they deserve. And we will not take legal protection away from our police. These maniacs want the police officers go out and hire lawyers so they can defend themselves. We won't do that. We will restore law and order in America. And we will override governors that don't look for law and order.

We will hold China accountable for unleashing the virus upon the world.
We will protect innocent life. We will defend our Constitution. We will defend the Second Amendment and we will proudly uphold the Judeo-Christian values and principles of our nations. We will restore education to our schools and we will teach our children to love their country, honor our history and to always respect our great American flag.

In conclusion, our MAGA movement, Make America Great Again, is by far the greatest political movement in the history of our country. Together we are standing up against some of the most menacing forces, entrenched interests and vicious opponents our people have ever seen. Despite great outside dangers, our greatest threat remains the sick, sinister and evil people from within our own country. But no matter how big or powerful the corrupt radical left Democrats are—and they are corrupt and they are powerful. We have to make them much less powerful. We will never allow anyone to forget that this nation does not belong to them. This nation belongs to you. This is your home. This is your heritage.

And our American liberty is your God-given right. From Allentown to Johnstown from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh, and from Philadelphia to Scranton, PA. We stand on the shoulders of American legends who poured out their blood, sweat and tears for our rights and for our freedom. They were so great.

Pennsylvania is where our founding fathers declared independence. It's where the army weathered its brutal winter at Valley Forge, where General George Washington led his men on a daring mission across the Delaware and where our union was saved by immortal heroes at Gettysburg. And this is the state where generations of tough strong Pennsylvania miners, factory workers and steel workers forged the greatest nation in the history of the world.

But now we are a nation in decline. We are a nation that is failing. We are a nation that has the highest inflation in over 50 years and where the stock market just finished the worst first half of the year since 1872. Likewise, we are a nation that has the highest energy costs in its history. We are no longer energy independent or energy-dominant as we just were two short years ago. We are a nation that is begging Venezuela, Saudi Arabia and many others for oil. "Please, please, please help us," Joe Biden says, but we have liquid gold right under our feet than any other country in the world.

We are a nation that is consumed by the radical left's Green New Deal, yet everyone knows that the Green New Deal will lead to our destruction. We are a nation that is surrendering all over, but in particular to Afghanistan, leaving behind dead soldiers, American citizens and 85 years' worth of the finest military equipment anywhere in the world. We are a nation that allowed Russia to devastate a country, Ukraine, killing hundreds of thousands of people and it will only get worse.

It would never have happened with me as commander-in-chief. And for four long years, it didn't happen. Never happen. And China with Taiwan is next. We are a nation that has weaponized its law enforcement against the opposing political party like never before. We've got a Federal Bureau of Investigation that won't allow bad election-changing facts to be presented to the public and a Department of Justice that refuses to investigate egregious acts of voting irregularities and fraud.

And we have a president who is cognitively impaired and in no condition to lead our country and everybody knows it. We are a nation that no longer has a free and fair press. Fake news is all you get and they are truly the enemy of the people. We are a nation where free speech is no longer allowed. Where crime is rampant like never before, where the economy has been collapsing, where more people died of COVID in 2021 than did in 2020.

We are a nation that is allowing Iran to build a massive nuclear weapon, which they are incredibly being allowed to do right now in China to use trillions and trillions of dollars that is taken from us to build a military, to rival our own.
And just two years ago we had Iran, China, Russia and North Korea in check. They weren't going to do a thing against us. And everybody knows it.

And perhaps most importantly, we are a nation that is no longer respected or listened to around the world. We are a nation that in many ways has become a joke. We are a nation that is hostile to liberty, freedom and faith. We are a nation whose economy is floundering, whose stores are not stocked. Whose deliveries are not coming and whose educational system is ranked at the bottom of every single list.

But we are not going to let this continue. Two years ago, we had the greatest election that we've ever had. But it was taken away from us. We weren't allowed to use the power of the people to make America great again. Two years ago, we also had greatness like no one had ever seen. And soon we have that greatness again.

It was hard-working patriots like you who built this country. And it is hard-working patriots like you who are going to save our country. We will stand up to the radical left lunatics, RINOs and we will fight for America like no one has ever fought before.

There is no mountain we cannot climb. There is no summit we cannot reach. There is no challenge we cannot meet. There is no we cannot have, We will not bend, we will not break, we will not yield. We will never give in, we will never give up. We will never ever, ever back down.

As long as we are confident and united, the tyrants we're fighting do not stand even a chance. We are Americans and Americans kneel to God and God alone.

My fellow citizens, this incredible journey we are on together has only just begun and it is time to start talking about greatness for our country again. We are one movement, one people, one family and one glorious American nation.

Image
[Adolph Hitler] We want to be one people ...

-- Triumph of the Will, directed by Leni Riefenstahl


So with the help of everyone here today, and citizens all across our land, we will make America powerful again. We will make America wealthy again. We will make America strong again. We will make America proud again. We will make America safe again. And we will make America great again.

Thank you very much, God bless you all. Thank you, Pennsylvania. Thank you.
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Mon Sep 05, 2022 2:46 am

Fmr. National Intelligence Official Sue Gordon Interview
by Nicolle Wallace
MSNBC
Sep 1, 2022



Nicolle Wallace speaks with former Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Sue Gordon about the national security implications of Donald Trump’s mishandling of classified information at Mar-a-Lago. Based on Gordon’s 30+ year career in the intelligence community, Gordon warns that “foreign threat actors who now know that information that we deem important has been and was recently in an unsecured location… they have the wherewithal and interest in going after that.”

Transcript

0:01
should former president trump still
0:04
receive intelligence briefings
0:06
i think not
0:08
it was an unprecedented step at the time
0:11
right after he took office president joe
0:14
biden said he would ban his predecessor
0:16
from receiving intelligence briefings
0:19
they are typically often provided to
0:21
former presidents new york times
0:23
explained the move this way quote the
0:25
first time that a former president have
0:27
been cut out of the briefings which are
0:29
provided partly as a courtesy and partly
0:31
for moments when a sitting president
0:33
reaches out for advice
0:35
currently the briefings are offered on a
0:37
regular basis to jimmy carter bill
0:39
clinton george w bush and barack obama
0:42
before president biden made that
0:43
announcement sue gordon who served as
0:46
deputy director of national intelligence
0:48
from 2017
0:50
until 2019 who the times described as
0:53
one of the most respected intelligence
0:55
officers of her generation made the case
0:58
for cutting off trump's access to
1:00
sensitive information in an op-ed in the
1:02
washington post shortly after the
1:04
capital insurrection she wrote this
1:06
quote his post-white house security
1:08
profile as the professionals like to
1:10
call it is daunting any former president
1:13
is by definition a target and prevent
1:16
some risk but a former president trump
1:18
even before the events of last week
1:21
might be unusually vulnerable to bad
1:23
actors with ill intent gordon went on to
1:25
describe how her experience with the
1:27
former president influenced her decision
1:29
quote i briefed him many times
1:31
participated in scores of meetings with
1:34
him as his principal deputy director for
1:36
national intelligence while i resigned
1:38
my position in 2019 this is not a
1:41
personal grievance as an intelligence
1:43
professional i have gone out of my way
1:45
not to judge his policy or personal
1:48
actions publicly this
1:50
is an intelligence assessment born of my
1:53
years of experience it's where we begin
1:55
the hour with the aforementioned sue
1:56
gordon one of our country's foremost
1:59
intelligence experts and professionals
2:00
she spent more than 30 years in the
2:02
intelligence community more than 20 of
2:05
them at the cia where she was involved
2:07
in among other high-stakes operations
2:10
the raid to kill or capture osama bin
2:12
laden she's been briefing american
2:14
presidents since ronald reagan when she
2:16
was four years old as we mentioned that
2:18
includes former president trump when she
2:19
served as principal deputy director of
2:21
national intelligence which in plain
2:23
english means she was the number two the
2:25
second most senior intelligence official
2:28
in the united states of america it's a
2:29
pleasure to get to talk to you thank you
2:31
so much for taking the time today
2:34
you bet great to see you can i ask this
2:36
is just a basic question um sure how was
2:40
what what was donald trump like
2:43
around classified
2:45
documents
2:48
uh so it's a great question i
2:51
listen he was i think the first thing
2:53
you need to know is the intelligence
2:55
community always treated him as the
2:56
president which meant
2:58
we shared with him
3:00
any and all information that we believed
3:03
the president needed regardless of
3:04
classification so that's step number one
3:07
step number two is i think he was an
3:09
interested consumer
3:11
he did not come into office nor during
3:14
his time in offices i observe develop
3:16
any particular understanding of the
3:18
craft and discipline
3:20
of intelligence in other words what's
3:22
special about it how does it differ from
3:24
what you read in the washington post new
3:25
york time as remarkable as those
3:28
uh journalistic
3:30
publications are um but so
3:33
he had access to it all we briefed him
3:35
all he was the president he had his
3:36
duties to carry out but it was my
3:39
experience that he didn't
3:41
appreciate
3:43
uh
3:44
the particular nature of
3:47
the craft edition of disappointment
3:48
intelligence and so that made him not
3:51
understand
3:53
what was being protected
3:56
and i guess nicole the the thing i would
3:57
just say
3:58
that is lost here is
4:00
you can't tell
4:02
what's classified
4:04
or important or the level just by
4:06
looking at it you can see something
4:08
sensational
4:10
and that can be something that is openly
4:12
available and you can see the most
4:13
mundane sentence and it is singularly
4:16
indicative of some intention
4:19
or some
4:20
action and so this idea that anyone can
4:23
just
4:25
casually assume what is really
4:26
classified is just false and the same
4:29
thing i would say go for the president i
4:30
just don't think that he
4:32
acquired that
4:34
uh appreciation
4:36
you said a bunch of really important
4:38
things i want to try to unpack them i
4:39
mean not understanding the craft what he
4:42
said publicly went beyond not
4:44
understanding the craft and i assume by
4:46
that you mean
4:47
the the
4:49
the professionalism and and the way all
4:51
of the product is curated and cold
4:54
embedded before anything's presented to
4:56
him the partnerships the alliances the
4:58
people who risk their lives to develop
5:00
and corroborate information before it's
5:01
ever presented to a president that craft
5:04
was lost on him
5:06
and how long it takes
5:08
and what it takes and who risks their
5:11
lives in order to
5:13
give us the information we need in order
5:16
to provide both national and global
5:18
security
5:20
you know intelligence isn't opinion
5:22
intelligence is the discipline by which
5:24
you take fundamentally uncertain
5:26
information
5:27
and
5:28
work it so the
5:30
decision makers can deal with it with a
5:32
kind of certainty but within each
5:35
sentence
5:36
there are untold years untold risks
5:40
and untold relationships that are buried
5:42
within and that
5:44
in addition to the particular piece of
5:47
information is what you're protecting so
5:49
when you don't understand that or you
5:50
say i think this is something i can
5:53
share and you don't understand that
5:55
you are potentially unraveling
5:58
networks that have taken years to build
6:00
and are at the cornerstone of global
6:03
security
6:06
were you ever involved in having to do
6:09
a spill assessment based on concerns
6:12
that he'd shared something um i know the
6:14
one that that is really public facing is
6:16
his oval office meeting with sergey
6:18
lavrov and i know h.r mcmaster ran did
6:20
not walk to the driveway to assure the
6:22
press they had not endangered sources
6:25
and methods or ally sources and methods
6:27
with lavrov but there were other
6:29
incidents he he would tweet out photos i
6:31
mean he he was constantly trying to push
6:35
sensitive information into the public
6:37
domain where it served him
6:42
so
6:43
any time
6:45
information was shared outside the
6:48
channels that would normally
6:50
be used to control it
6:53
we routinely assessed
6:55
what the impact of that
6:58
would be now it is true that a sitting
7:00
president
7:02
does have many authorities to make
7:04
decisions in his role about national
7:06
security and nicole i just think this is
7:08
one of the things that's getting that
7:10
gets so lost
7:11
we have access to classification
7:13
information to serve the nation's
7:15
interests
7:17
individuals
7:20
when they have access to that and
7:22
especially when they have access to
7:23
classify and declassify things as the
7:26
president did as i did and some others
7:28
you are a steward of the nation's
7:31
interests
7:32
and so you
7:34
need to be
7:36
considering those interests when you
7:38
make every decision right so when is a
7:41
sitting president makes those decisions
7:43
that is in his role as the president a
7:45
decision about what's in the nation's
7:46
interest
7:47
that is an entirely different role when
7:49
you are a private citizen as he is and i
7:52
am now that doesn't mean that at some
7:54
point the nation couldn't say gosh we
7:56
need the former president or gus we need
7:59
sue gordon to have access to information
8:01
anew
8:02
but when you're no longer in office
8:04
you are not the keeper of the nation's
8:07
interests and consequently your
8:08
authority and your responsibility
8:10
changes
8:11
but sue he's clearly talking about
8:14
declassification in the context of
8:16
personal criminal liability not the
8:18
context you're describing a state
8:20
interest right
8:22
yeah and so there's just no
8:24
you know the act of declassifying is not
8:26
a personal act
8:28
it's not not an act for preference it's
8:30
not an act because i want to it's not
8:32
because i want to do something it's
8:33
because it serves
8:34
either the national or the public
8:36
interests and it's a process that you go
8:38
through
8:39
that you work with exa with experts to
8:41
say
8:42
if i declassify this what will the
8:44
impact be and can we bear it so it isn't
8:46
something casually done regardless of
8:48
whether you have the authority to do so
8:50
or not and it isn't in order to protect
8:53
yourself or to
8:55
aggrandize yourself it's just it's an
8:57
entirely different thing and so
8:59
this discussion about authority to
9:01
classify
9:03
it it is not
9:06
for personal reasons even if it
9:08
temporarily resides in a person
9:11
ever while just and that is and that is
9:13
the only way it's being discussed but he
9:15
couldn't have broken the law because he
9:17
had the authority no one in the national
9:19
security
9:21
not even establishment but never no one
9:23
who ever touched a national security
9:24
role is even interested in whether
9:26
you're the authority or not they're
9:28
they're interested in what has been
9:29
jeopardized and i wonder when you read
9:31
right um
9:33
and not just the picture for the shock
9:34
value but when you read the programs
9:36
that may have been jeopardized i mean
9:38
can you take us inside what abril haynes
9:40
is likely having to undertake in terms
9:43
of the assessment you kind of the
9:45
assessment that you would have had to do
9:46
if you were still there yeah
9:49
so listen the act of classifying the
9:51
classification system
9:53
you know has some very specific
9:56
guidelines and it isn't casually done
9:58
either and it's all about
10:00
the value and specificity of the
10:03
information
10:04
and or
10:06
the sources and methods used
10:08
to acquire it and those have levels of
10:15
protections implied depending on how
10:18
exquisite
10:19
either the information or the access is
10:22
so i am sure that team is going through
10:25
every document
10:26
making sure that it understands which
10:29
pieces of it represent that kind of
10:32
classified information and then looking
10:34
at
10:35
the impact of loss that usually comes
10:38
down to
10:39
what advantage are we deriving from it
10:41
whether it is in partnership
10:44
in methodology or in the information
10:47
itself and and they're breaking it down
10:49
they're breaking it down by paragraph um
10:52
they this is not going to be an exercise
10:55
where they just blanket over classify
10:58
something they will look at each piece
11:00
of information there are professionals
11:02
who look at
11:04
classification
11:06
and classification levels and they will
11:08
be combing through this piece by piece
11:11
you know nicole the other thing that
11:12
they'll be that they know that i don't
11:14
think we're talking about much and that
11:17
is our adversaries have a
11:19
and competitors have a voice in this
11:22
listen don't be mistaken
11:26
foreign threat actors
11:28
who now know
11:30
that information
11:32
that we deem important
11:35
has been
11:37
was recently
11:38
in an unsecured location
11:41
they have the wherewithal and the
11:43
interest in going after that
11:45
and they're going to be looking at that
11:46
too
11:47
so the
11:48
we're talking about it as though it's
11:51
specific just to the person donald trump
11:53
i'm talking about the reason why we have
11:55
these rules the reason why i wrote that
11:57
op-ed is
11:59
you don't even have to
12:01
be going after an individual to know
12:04
that this action by any individual is
12:08
putting the nation at risk and our
12:09
adversaries and competitors
12:11
will take any advantage
12:14
and we created an opening that is a much
12:17
lower bar than they typically have to
12:19
cross
12:27
[Music]
12:40
you
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Mon Sep 05, 2022 2:58 am

Sen. Graham Lied Because He’s ‘Afraid’ Of His Own Words
by Lawrence O'Donnell
MSNBC
Aug 30, 2022



MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell explains that Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham lied about what he said calling for “riots in the streets” if Trump gets indicted.

Transcript

0:06
WELL, LINDSEY GRAHAM IS NOW
0:10
AFRAID OF HIMSELF.
0:16
A QUISLING QUISLING AFRAID OF A
0:19
SHADOW.
0:19
AND HE PROVED THAT TONIGHT BY
0:20
GOING ON FOX TO LIE ABOUT WHAT
0:21
HE SAID ON THE FOX PROPAGANDA
0:24
CHANNEL.
0:24
HE'S AFRAID OF HIS OWN WORDS,
0:27
SO HE'S AFRAID TO REPEAT THEM,
0:29
SO HE LIED ABOUT THEM TONIGHT.
0:30
LINDSEY GRAHAM DID NOT DARE TO
0:33
REPEAT WHAT HE SAID.
0:34
DIDN'T THEIR REPEATED TONIGHT
0:36
AFTER TWO DAYS OF RELENTLESS
0:39
CRITICISM OF LINDSEY GRAHAM
0:40
INCLUDING ON THIS PROGRAM LAST
0:41
NIGHT AND CULMINATING AT THE
0:43
END OF THE DAY TODAY WITH JOE
0:45
BIDEN OF ALL PEOPLE ATTACKING
0:47
LINDSEY GRAHAM FOR SAYING THAT
0:50
IF DONALD TRUMP IS INDICTED,
0:51
THERE WILL BE WRITING IN THE
0:53
STREETS.
0:53
AND I SAY JOE BIDEN OF ALL
0:56
PEOPLE BECAUSE THE VERY LAST
0:58
THING JOE BIDEN WANTS TO DO IS
1:01
ATTACK A UNITED STATES SENATOR.
1:03
AND JOE BIDEN'S SENATE AND THE
1:05
SENATE WHERE I WORKED IN THE
1:07
1990S, NOT JUST WAS NOT DONE.
1:09
BUT NO ONE IN THE UNITED STATES
1:12
SENATE IN THOSE DAYS REACHED
1:15
THE PEAK OF INDECENCY THAT
1:17
LINDSEY GRAHAM REACHED SUNDAY
1:19
NIGHT WHEN HE SAID THERE WILL
1:20
BE RIOTING IN THE STREETS.
1:23
NOT EVEN STROM THURMOND.
1:25
LINDSEY GRAHAM IS A UNITED
1:28
STATES SENATOR BECAUSE STROM
1:33
THURMOND COULD NOT LIVE FOREVER
1:34
EVEN THOUGH HE TRIED.
1:35
SOUTH CAROLINA'S VERY SENIOR
1:38
SENATOR STROM THURMOND CHOSE
1:40
NOT TO RUN FOR REELECTION FOR
1:42
THE SENATE WHEN HE WAS 100
1:44
YEARS OLD, THEREFORE CREATING
1:47
THE OPPORTUNITY FOR
1:50
CONGRESSMAN'S LINDSEY GRAHAM TO
1:52
MOVE UP.
1:53
THE NEXT YEAR, STROM THURMOND
1:56
DIED AT THE AGE OF ONE 101
1:58
YEARS OLD.
1:59
SIX YEARS LATER WE DISCOVER
2:02
THIS TRUMP THURMAN HAD A SECRET,
2:04
A BIG ONE.
2:04
STROM THURMOND HAD A DAUGHTER
2:06
WHO HE NEVER PUBLICLY AND
2:09
KNOWLEDGE SHE WAS BORN BEFORE
2:10
HE WAS MARRIED.
2:11
HE WAS 23 YEARS OLD AND THE
2:14
TEENAGE GIRL HE GOT PREGNANT
2:16
WHO WAS WORKING IN HIS PARENTS
2:18
HOME WAS 16 YEARS OLD.
2:23
STRUNG THURMAN FIRST CHILD, A
2:29
CA MILAN'S FIRST CHILD WAS
2:32
BLACK.
2:33
STRUM THURMAN ALWAYS KNEW WHEN
2:36
HE HAD A BLOCK DAUGHTER, BUILT
2:37
HIS POLITICAL CAREER ON RACISM
2:39
AND SEGREGATION, AND SOUTH
2:41
CAROLINA'S WHITE VOTERS
2:43
REWARDED HIM FOR HIS RAG RACIST
2:46
SEGREGATION POLICIES AND THE
2:47
FILIBUSTERS AGAINST CIVIL
2:48
RIGHTS LEGISLATION THAT HE
2:50
JOINED ON THE SENATE FLOOR.
2:52
LIKE LINDSEY GRAHAM, STRUNG
2:55
THURMAN NEVER APOLOGIZED.
2:56
BUT EVEN STROM THURMAN NEVER
3:00
SAID IF THE LEADER OF MY PARTY
3:03
IS INDICTED THERE WILL BE
3:05
RIDING IN THE STREETS.
3:08
NO SENATOR HAS EVER SAID THAT.
3:11
WHEN A SPECIAL PROSECUTOR WAS
3:14
INVESTIGATING PRESIDENT RICHARD
3:16
NIXON, REPUBLICAN SENATOR STROM
3:18
THURMAN DID NOT SAY IF HE IS
3:21
IMPEACHED THERE WILL BE RIDING
3:22
IN THE STREETS.
3:23
EVEN STROM THURMAN KNEW THAT
3:26
THE UNITED STATES SENATE SHOULD
3:28
NEVER SAY THAT, NEVER.
3:29
WHO WON EXPLAINS LINDSEY GRAHAM?
3:32
HIS WEAKNESS AND FALLING OVER
3:36
DONALD TRUMP IS SOMETHING WE
3:37
HAD NEVER SEEN IN A SENATOR
3:40
BEFORE DONALD TRUMP INVADED THE
3:43
REPUBLICAN PARTY.
3:44
WHATEVER EXPLAINS LINDSEY
3:46
GRAHAM WE MAY NEVER KNOW.
3:48
PERHAPS WE WILL LEARN MORE
3:50
ABOUT HIM SIX MONTHS AFTER HIS
3:53
DEATH AS WE DID WITH STROM
3:57
THURMAN.
3:57
MAYBE IN A PECULIAR SOUTH
3:59
CAROLINA REPUBLICAN SENATE
4:01
TRADITION, LINDSEY GRAHAM HAS A
4:03
SECRET.
4:03
AND THE PERSON LINDSEY GRAHAM
4:05
KNOWS WHO LOVES SECRETS THE
4:07
MOST IS DONALD TRUMP.
4:09
WE KNOW NOW KNOW THAT DONALD
4:11
TRUMP HAS BEEN HAPPILY RIDING
4:13
AROUND GOLF CARTS IN FLORIDA
4:14
KNOWING THAT IN THE BASEMENT HE
4:16
HAD A GOVERNMENT DOCUMENT
4:19
IDENTIFIED IN THE FBI INVENTORY
4:22
OF THE FBI SEARCH BUT SAID
4:25
INFILTRATE, PRESIDENT OF
4:27
FRANCE.
4:28
DONALD TRUMP SHOWED LINDSEY
4:30
GRAHAM WHAT HE IS CAPABLE OF IN
4:32
THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN
4:35
WHEN LINDSEY GRAHAM WAS STILL
4:36
CAMPAIGNING AGAINST DONALD
4:37
TRUMP AND ACCURATELY
4:40
CRITICIZING DONALD TRUMP.
4:41
AND THEN THIS HAPPENED.
4:43
>> HE GAVE ME HIS NUMBER AND I
4:46
FOUND THE CARD.
4:47
I WROTE THE NUMBER DOWN.
4:49
I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S THE RIGHT
4:51
NUMBER.
4:51
LET'S TRY IT.
4:55
202 TO 28029 TO.
4:56
I DON'T KNOW.
4:57
MAYBE IT'S, IT'S THREE OR FOUR
4:59
YEARS, AGO MAYBE IT'S AN OLD
5:00
NUMBER.
5:03
202 TO 208029 TO.
5:05
I DON'T KNOW, GIVE IT A SHOT.
5:07
>> IT WAS LINDSEY GRAHAM'S
5:10
PHONE NUMBER.
5:11
DONALD TRUMP GAVE A LINDSEY
5:15
GRAHAM'S PRIVATE CELL PHONE
5:17
NUMBER IN PUBLIC.
5:18
IMAGINE THE FEAR LINDSEY GRAHAM
5:20
HAS LIVED WITH SINCE THEN.
5:22
THE FEAR OF DONALD TRUMP, THE
5:24
FEAR OF WHAT DONALD TRUMP COULD
5:25
REVEAL ABOUT HIM.
5:26
LINDSEY GRAHAM KNOWS THAT
5:28
DONALD TRUMP IS A PATHOLOGICAL
5:30
LIAR, SO DONALD TRUMP KNOWS IT
5:32
LINDSEY GRAHAM KNOWS THAT
5:33
DONALD TRUMP COULD SAY
5:34
SOMETHING ABOUT THEM THAT IS
5:35
FALSE.
5:35
OR SAY SOMETHING ABOUT LINDSEY
5:37
GRAHAM THAT DONALD TRUMP
5:39
COULDN'T PROVE.
5:42
THAT CONSCIOUS QUESTION, WHAT
5:44
ARE YOU GOING TO TELL YOUR
5:46
CHILDREN OR GRANDCHILDREN TO
5:48
STOP DONALD TRUMP DOES NOT
5:50
APPLY TO LINDSEY GRAHAM.
5:51
I'M LIKE STROM THURMAN, LINDSEY
5:54
GRAHAM DOES NOT HAVE CHILDREN
5:55
AND IS NOT SUSPECTED OF HAVING
5:57
CHILDREN THAT WE DON'T KNOW
5:58
ABOUT.
5:58
NEVER BEEN MARRIED, DOESN'T
6:00
EVEN HAVE A DOG.
6:02
HE HAS BY OUTWARD APPEARANCE NO
6:06
ONE AND NOTHING TO LOVE MORE
6:08
THAN THE TITLE OF SENATOR.
6:10
AND THAT PROBABLY EXPLAINS
6:12
LINDSEY GRAHAM PROBABLY AS WELL
6:14
AS ANYTHING CAN.
6:15
HE WILL DO ANYTHING AND SAY
6:17
ANYTHING TO HOLD ON TO THE
6:18
TITLE OF SENATOR, A TITLE HE
6:20
KNOWS DONALD TRUMP COULD RIP
6:22
AWAY FROM HIM BY ENDORSING
6:23
ANOTHER REPUBLICAN TO RUN
6:25
AGAINST LINDSEY GRAHAM AND
6:27
SOUTH CAROLINA.
6:27
IF THAT IS THE EXPLANATION OF
6:29
SENATOR LINDSEY GRAHAM, THINK
6:30
OF THE HOLLOWNESS OF THAT MAN.
6:32
THINK OF THE EMPTINESS WHERE
6:36
CONSCIENCE IS SUPPOSED TO
6:38
RESIDE IN HIM.
6:40
THE TWO MOST MISERABLE
6:43
POLITICIANS IN AMERICA TONIGHT
6:45
ARE LINDSEY GRAHAM AND THE MAN
6:48
HE SERVES, DONALD TRUMP.
6:50
BOTH FIGHTING CRIMINAL
6:53
INVESTIGATIONS OF THEIR
6:54
CONDUCT.
6:54
WHEN LINDSEY GRAHAM WENT ON FOX
6:56
TONIGHT, HE WAS NOT ASKED A
6:58
SINGLE QUESTION ABOUT THE
6:59
SUBPOENA FOR HIM TO TESTIFY TO
7:02
A GEORGIA GRAND JURY ABOUT HIS
7:03
AND DONALD TRUMP'S ATTEMPTS TO
7:05
OVERTURN THE PRESIDENTIAL
7:07
ELECTION IN GEORGIA.
7:08
BUT THE HOST DID SHOW LINDSEY
7:09
GRAHAM WITH JOE BIDEN SAID
7:10
ABOUT HIM TODAY AND INVITED
7:13
LINDSEY GRAHAM TO LIE HIS WAY
7:14
OUT OF IT.
7:14
>> BUT SENATOR, HE DID BRING
7:17
YOU UP, NOT SPECIFICALLY BUT IT
7:18
BROUGHT UP A COMMENTS HE MADE
7:20
ON SON SUNDAY.
7:21
LET'S LISTEN.
7:22
>> THE IDEA YOU TURN ON A
7:25
TELEVISION AND CEASE AND SENIOR
7:26
SENATORS AND CONGRESSMAN SAYING
7:29
IF SUCH AND SUCH HAPPENS,
7:30
THEY'LL BE BLOOD IN THE STREET.
7:31
WHERE THE HELL ARE WE?
7:33
>> SENATOR, HE'S REFERRING TO
7:37
YOU.
7:37
WHAT IS HE TALKING ABOUT?
7:39
I GUESS IT'S A COMMENT MADE
7:41
SUNDAY WHEN ASKED IF PRESIDENT
7:43
TRUMP IS INTERESTED OR
7:44
INDICTED.
7:44
>> YEAH SO WHAT I SAID SUNDAYS,
7:46
THAT AMERICANS REJECT, I REJECT
7:49
VIOLENCE.
7:49
>> THAT'S A LIE.
7:52
HE NEVER SAID THAT ON SUNDAY.
7:53
LINDSEY GRAHAM NEVER SAID THAT
7:56
AMERICANS REJECT VIOLENT, AND
7:57
HE NEVER SAID I REJECT
7:59
VIOLENCE.
8:00
HERE'S THE REST OF LINDSEY
8:02
GRAHAM'S ANSWER TONIGHT.
8:03
>> I ALSO REJECT THE DOUBLE
8:05
STANDARD HERE.
8:06
SO IF THEY TRY TO RESCUE
8:09
PRESIDENT TRUMP ARREST
8:12
PRESIDENT TRUMP FROM
8:14
MISHANDLING CLASSIFIED
8:15
INFORMATION, AFTER THE CLINTON
8:17
DEBACLE WHEN SHE WAS SECRETARY
8:18
OF STATE, PEOPLE LOSE FAITH IN
8:19
LAW ENFORCEMENT.
8:20
>> THAT IS ANOTHER LINDSEY
8:22
GRAHAM LIE.
8:22
THAT IS NOT WITNESSED A GRAND
8:24
SET.
8:24
ON SUNDAY, LINDSEY GRAHAM DID
8:28
NOT SAY IF PRESIDENT TRUMP IS
8:29
PROSECUTED, PEOPLE IN THIS
8:30
COUNTRY WILL LOSE FAITH AND LAW
8:32
ENFORCEMENT.
8:32
HERE ARE THE WORDS THAT LINDSEY
8:34
GRAHAM ACTUALLY SAID ON FOX ON
8:37
SUNDAY THAT HE IS NOW SO AFRAID
8:40
OF HE DARES NOT TO SAY THEM
8:43
AGAIN.
8:44
>> AND I'LL SAY THIS, IF THERE
8:47
IS A PROSECUTION OF DONALD
8:48
TRUMP FOR MISHANDLING
8:50
CLASSIFIED INFORMATION AFTER
8:51
THE CLINTON DEBACLE WHICH HE
8:54
PRESIDED OVER AND DID A HELL OF
8:55
A GOOD JOB, THERE WILL BE RIOTS
8:58
IN THE STREETS.
8:59
>> FOX OWNS THAT A VIDEO.
9:01
FOX OWNS THE VIDEO OF LINDSEY
9:03
GRAHAM SAYING THEY'LL BE RIOTS
9:05
IN THE STREETS.
9:06
FOX COULD'VE SHOWN THAT VIDEO
9:07
TO LINDSEY GRAHAM TONIGHT, BUT
9:10
FOX WILL NOT SHOW THAT VIDEO
9:11
AGAIN.
9:11
THAT'S NOT THE WAY RUPERT
9:13
MURDOCH DOES BUSINESS.
9:14
THERE WILL BE RIOTS IN THE
9:17
STREETS.
9:17
THAT WAS SUNDAY NIGHT.
9:20
TONIGHT, LINDSEY GRAHAM CHANGES
9:22
THAT TO PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY
9:25
WILL LOSE FAITH AND LAW
9:26
ENFORCEMENT.
9:26
LINDSEY GRAHAM TURNED
9:28
REPUBLICANS INTO THE RIOTS IN
9:30
THE STREETS PARTY THIS WEEK AND
9:32
NOW HE'S TRYING TO RUN AWAY
9:34
FROM WHAT HE SAID.
9:35
AND TODAY, JOE BIDEN MADE SURE
9:39
THAT PEOPLE KNEW WHAT'S LINDSEY
9:42
GRAHAM WAS TALKING ABOUT WHEN
9:43
HE WAS PREDICTING ERADICATING
9:45
RIOTS IN THE STREETS.
9:46
PRESIDENT BIDEN TALKED ABOUT
9:48
THE TRUMP RIOT THAT ALREADY
9:50
HAPPENED ON JANUARY SIX, AFTER
9:54
THE UNITED STATES CAPITAL.
9:57
>> THEY ATTACKED IT INSULTED
10:00
SPIRITED WITH FLAGPOLES,
10:03
SPRAYED WITH MACE, STOMPED ON,
10:05
DRAGGED, BRUTALIZED.
10:07
POLICE LOST THEIR LIVES AS A
10:09
RESULT OF THE DAY.
10:12
WHEN OFFICER SAID, IT WAS WORSE
10:15
THAN ANYTHING HE HAD
10:17
EXPERIENCED IN WAR IN IRAQ.
10:18
LET ME SAY TO THIS TO MY MAGA
10:20
REPUBLICAN FRIENDS IN CONGRESS,
10:23
DON'T TELL ME IS SUPPORT LAW
10:25
ENFORCEMENT IF YOU WON'T
10:27
CONDEMN WHAT HAPPENED ON THE
10:29
SIXTH.
10:31
DON'T TELL ME!
10:36
[APPLAUSE] YOU CAN'T DO IT!
10:42
FOR GOD'S SAKE, WHO'S SIDE ARE
10:45
YOU ON!
10:45
WHO'S SIDE ARE YOU ON?
10:53
LOOK, YOU ARE EITHER ON THE
11:01
SIDE OF THE MOB OR THE SIDE OF
11:03
THE POLICE.
11:03
YOU CAN'T BE PRO LAW
11:05
ENFORCEMENT AND PRO
11:06
INSURRECTION.
11:06
YOU CAN'T BE A PARTY OF LAW AND
11:11
ORDER AND CALL THE PEOPLE WHO
11:13
ATTACKED THE POLICE ON JANUARY
11:17
6TH PATRIOTS.
11:18
YOU CAN'T DO IT!
11:19
WHAT ARE WE TEACHING OUR
11:22
CHILDREN?
11:22
IT'S JUST THAT SIMPLE.
11:25
AND NOW IT'S SICKENING TO SEE
11:28
THE NEW ATTACKS ON THE FBI,
11:31
THREATENING LIFE OF LAW
11:32
ENFORCEMENT AGENTS AND THEIR
11:34
FAMILIES FOR SIMPLY CARRYING
11:36
OUT THE LAW AND DOING THEIR
11:39
JOB.
11:41
LOOK, I WANT TO SAY THIS AS
11:44
CLEAR AS I CAN.
11:45
THERE'S NO PLACE IN THIS
11:47
COUNTRY, NO PLACE FOR
11:50
ENDANGERING THE LIVES OF LAW
11:52
ENFORCEMENT.
11:53
NO PLACE!
11:55
[APPLAUSE] NONE, NEVER PERIOD!
11:58
I'M OPPOSED TO DEFINING THE
12:01
POLICE, I'M ALSO OPPOSED TO
12:04
DEFUNDING THE FBI.
12:05
THE IDEA THAT YOU TURN ON A
12:07
TELEVISION AND SEE SENIOR
12:08
SENATORS
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Mon Sep 05, 2022 11:46 pm

Judge Cannon's unjustified special master ruling; Barron's bedroom; and DOJ's continued inaction
by Glenn Kirschner
Sep 5, 2022



Trump appointee Judge Aileen Cannon just issued an opinion that has no real basis in fact or law. She has appointed a special master to review all documents Donald Trump stole from the White House and unlawfully concealed at his Florida home, Mar-a-Lago. Additionally, Judge Cannon ordered that the Department of Justice must stop its criminal investigation of Trump and company as it pertains to the stolen documents. The DOJ can not allow this improper ruling to stand unchallenged. This video discusses why the DOJ must appeal this unsupportable court ruling.

This video also takes on two other legal stories: Trump's assertion that the FBI searched his son Barron's bedroom during their search of Mar-a-Lago and the DOJ's inaction in attempting to extract from Donald Trump the information he has about how he compromised our national security with the stolen classified and national defense documents.

Transcript

0:00
so let's take on three quick updates
0:03
first judge alien Cannon grants Donald
0:06
Trump's request for the appointment of a
0:09
special master
0:10
second the FBI searches Baron's bedroom
0:16
and third the continued inaction by the
0:19
Department of Justice
0:21
let's tackle these three stories
0:24
because Justice matters
0:30
thank you foreign
0:42
ER here so let's take on three quick
0:45
legal updates and the first one is a big
0:48
one we just learned that a federal
0:51
district court judge a trump appointee
0:53
judge Aileen Cannon just granted Donald
0:58
Trump's request that a special Master be
1:01
appointed to review all of the documents
1:04
that were seized pursuant to a
1:07
judicially authorized search
1:10
from Mar-A-Lago and this one friends is
1:13
hot off the presses I've just read a
1:16
short summary of the judge's opinion I
1:18
have to digest the entire opinion so
1:20
please bear with me this will be a
1:22
little bit of a stream of Consciousness
1:24
video but boy I've seen some some things
1:26
that um leave me troubled
1:30
first let me read the short summary of
1:32
Judge Cannon's ruling
1:35
the court hereby authorizes the
1:37
appointment of a special Master to
1:39
review the seized property for personal
1:42
items and documents and potentially
1:44
privileged material subject to claims of
1:47
attorney client and or executive
1:50
privilege
1:51
furthermore in natural conjunction with
1:54
that appointment and consistent with the
1:56
value and sequence of special Master
1:58
procedures the court also temporarily
2:02
enjoins the government from reviewing
2:05
and using the seized materials for
2:08
investigative purposes pending
2:11
completion of the special Masters review
2:13
or further court order
2:15
this order shall not impede the
2:18
classification review and or
2:20
intelligence assessment by the office of
2:23
the Director of National Intelligence
2:25
odni as described in the government's
2:28
notice of receipt of preliminary order
2:33
okay friends that's a mouthful let's try
2:35
to unpack it and then let's hit the
2:37
highlights and the low lights
2:39
first of all
2:41
the Department of Justice and the
2:43
executive branch will now have some
2:45
tactical decisions to make
2:47
does doj appeal this order or do they
2:51
let it stand and try to comply with it I
2:53
suggest they should appeal it
2:56
it is of dubious legal Authority
2:59
and here's the problem
3:02
if they don't appeal it and they let it
3:04
stand
3:05
it will be viewed as precedent it won't
3:07
be actual precedent because trial court
3:10
judges don't set precedent only
3:12
Appellate Court judges do but what they
3:14
do is they set what I call atmospheric
3:17
precedent in the future other people
3:19
will point to this and say hey Donald
3:21
Trump got a special Master doj just
3:25
searched my place I want a special
3:26
Master two it's not legal precedent but
3:31
that kind of argument can carry some
3:34
weight it can be somewhat persuasive
3:37
so I think that's one reason the
3:38
Department of Justice should seriously
3:40
consider appealing this to the Appellate
3:42
Court and then we'll get some precedent
3:45
on the issue actual legal precedent
3:48
the second thing that really troubles me
3:51
is that the judge ordered the Department
3:54
of Justice to stop dead in its tracks
3:56
its criminal investigation based on the
4:00
documents that They seized documents
4:02
that Donald Trump stole from the federal
4:04
government and unlawfully concealed at
4:07
Mar-A-Lago why is that such a big deal
4:10
why is that so potentially damaging and
4:14
dangerous here's why
4:16
let's assume that as the FBI agents and
4:21
the federal prosecutors working this
4:23
case
4:24
have been pouring through the thousands
4:27
of documents Donald Trump stole many of
4:29
them highly classified many of them
4:31
having the potential to compromise our
4:34
national security let's assume they've
4:36
already taken all sorts of investigative
4:39
steps I would assume they have
4:41
for example they may have found
4:42
documents in there that led them to
4:45
issue subpoenas for other Witnesses
4:48
and those Witnesses maybe are scheduled
4:50
to appear before the grand jury tomorrow
4:53
does that mean the federal prosecutors
4:55
have to withdraw those subpoenas
4:57
stop dead in their tracks on the
5:00
investigative work they're doing let me
5:02
use another example
5:04
some of these documents I would bet are
5:07
being forensically tested when we get
5:10
documents as evidence of crime in cases
5:13
some of what we do is we will send those
5:17
documents out for forensic testing for
5:19
fingerprints
5:21
for DNA to a lesser degree for
5:25
handwriting analysis if we see some
5:27
handwritten notes on the document and we
5:30
need to try to figure out whose notes
5:32
they are
5:34
we send we send evidence out for
5:36
forensic testing let's assume that
5:38
forensic testing is ongoing is in
5:41
process is Midstream do we have to put
5:43
an absolute stop to it right this minute
5:46
because judge Cannon said I am in
5:49
joining in other words putting an
5:52
immediate hold on all investigative
5:55
efforts in this criminal investigation
5:57
that arose from the seizure of the
6:00
evidence of crime that the FBI found at
6:03
Mar-A-Lago that as a former career
6:06
prosecutor is not something I ever want
6:09
to do if a judge tells me to do it and
6:11
the judge has lawful Authority and we
6:13
don't appeal the judge's ruling then
6:15
we're stuck with it we have to abide by
6:17
the court order but boy
6:19
if I were in any of these meetings
6:21
debating on whether to appeal this order
6:24
I would vote in favor of appealing it
6:29
another consideration that the executive
6:31
branch is going to have to
6:34
um consider
6:36
is
6:37
does Joe Biden now waive executive
6:40
privilege with respect to all of the
6:42
stolen documents that were seized from
6:45
Mar-A-Lago I don't think he has done
6:46
that yet
6:47
and I don't think he would have felt
6:49
compelled to do that because there was
6:52
an argument that Donald Trump can't even
6:54
lawfully have a special Master appointed
6:58
to review executive branch documents he
7:00
stole
7:02
um so there was really no need for Joe
7:04
Biden to waive executive privilege but
7:06
now there might be a need
7:08
so would it impact the judge's order or
7:12
her future decision
7:14
on whether a special Master should be
7:17
reviewing these documents for executive
7:19
privilege if Joe Biden now affirmatively
7:22
waived executive privilege for the items
7:24
that were seized from Mar-A-Lago which I
7:26
don't believe he has technically done
7:28
yet he's waived executive privilege in
7:30
other settings and with respect to other
7:33
documents like stuff that went from the
7:35
National Archives over to the January 6
7:38
committee
7:39
so that's something else that I think
7:40
the executive branch is going to have to
7:43
decide
7:44
one of the small bright spots in the
7:47
judge's order is that she said well I'm
7:50
not going to order that you stop
7:53
assessing the National Security damage
7:56
that Donald Trump has potentially done
7:58
to our nation by stealing and unlawfully
8:01
concealing and perhaps sharing we don't
8:04
know these documents the assessment by
8:07
the office of the Director of National
8:10
Intelligence that can continue to see if
8:13
we can you know save the lives of
8:16
overseas assets
8:19
to see if we can mitigate the damage
8:21
Donald Trump has done to our safety and
8:24
our national security well thank you
8:26
judge for throwing us that bone yeah you
8:30
can see that I am pretty critical of the
8:33
judge's decision to Grant a special
8:35
master and to stop dead in its tracks
8:39
the department of Justice's criminal
8:42
investigation of trump and Company as a
8:45
result of the seizure of these documents
8:48
um boy do I disagree with that approach
8:51
and as I say I hope the Department of
8:54
Justice will seriously consider
8:56
appealing this because this should not
8:59
stand
9:00
in my opinion
9:03
Second Story
9:04
Donald Trump held yet another hate rally
9:06
in Pennsylvania
9:07
and he announced in his most aggrieved
9:11
tones
9:12
that during the search of Mar-A-Lago
9:14
they even searched my 16 year old son
9:18
Baron's bedroom what an outrage how
9:22
vicious what a tragedy what a travesty
9:25
that was unlawful
9:28
that's a bunch of nonsense first of all
9:31
let's assume he's telling the truth
9:33
never a safe assumption with Donald
9:35
Trump and that the FBI did search
9:38
Baron's bedroom
9:40
you know what the FBI was authorized to
9:43
search by the judicially approved search
9:46
warrant
9:48
the residents at Mar-A-Lago they were
9:51
not permitted to search guest rooms
9:54
right rooms where Hotel guests might be
9:58
staying but they were lawfully
10:00
authorized to search the residents that
10:02
includes bedrooms
10:05
so on the off chance that Donald Trump
10:09
is telling the truth for a change and
10:11
the FBI searched Baron's bedroom they
10:13
were lawfully entitled to do it
10:17
here's the other thing I'll say
10:19
we execute a lot of search warrants
10:21
every year on the homes of individuals
10:25
on the homes of targets of a criminal
10:27
investigation
10:29
if criminals could thwart law
10:33
enforcement efforts by hiding evidence
10:36
of their crimes in their kids bedrooms
10:40
that wouldn't make a lot of sense would
10:42
it
10:42
no
10:44
do you know how many times friends I was
10:46
involved in an investigation and a
10:49
search warrant was executed and we would
10:52
find for example
10:55
guns and kilos of cocaine hidden in a
11:00
stroller in a baby's room
11:03
and guess what the baby didn't put it
11:05
there
11:06
the target of the investigation put it
11:09
there that's why when we are applying
11:12
for search warrants we make sure we seek
11:15
permission to search every place
11:18
evidence of crime could be concealed or
11:22
could be held
11:24
including kids rooms
11:26
so this is Donald Trump lying putting
11:30
disinformation into the heads of his
11:33
supporters
11:35
and trying to continue to whip up
11:39
um anti-fbi sentiment anti-doj sentiment
11:44
anti-executive Branch sentiment you know
11:47
he is trying to raise people to anger
11:51
and by inference potentially trying to
11:54
inspire them to violence we've seen this
11:57
movie before on January 6th go to the
12:00
Capitol and fight like hell or you won't
12:02
have a country anymore now get down
12:04
there and stop
12:05
the certification for which his foot
12:08
soldiers the people who listened to his
12:10
commands are being locked up they're
12:12
being imprisoned one was just sentenced
12:14
to 10 years in prison for breaching the
12:16
capital and assaulting police officers
12:18
and tomorrow Donald Trump has a tee time
12:24
so
12:25
at his most recent hate rally in
12:27
Pennsylvania this was just a bunch of
12:29
nonsense that he continues to offer to
12:32
his supporters in his you know
12:35
never-ending attempt to fool the
12:38
gullible
12:39
and let's take on a third and final
12:41
story and this one has me frustrated and
12:45
truth be told
12:47
angry
12:48
and it has to do with how the Department
12:51
of Justice is handling the fact that a
12:55
former president Donald Trump has
12:57
information
12:59
about how our national security was
13:02
compromised
13:04
and they don't seem all that determined
13:07
to extract that information from him
13:10
you know early this morning I put pen to
13:13
paper I guess I didn't put pen to paper
13:15
I I put Finger to phone
13:18
um you know this coming from a guy who
13:21
still does everything on dry erase white
13:23
boards and legal pads so yeah I guess I
13:26
put Finger to phone and I tweeted this
13:29
morning trying to deal with my own
13:32
Rising frustration
13:34
and here's what I said
13:36
if any other former President Carter
13:39
Bush Clinton Obama had information that
13:43
could assist with the national security
13:45
breach or threat they would promptly
13:48
meet with executive branch officials and
13:51
provide that information
13:53
not Donald Trump
13:55
knows precisely who he showed the top
13:59
secret documents to who he shared them
14:01
with who he gave them to
14:04
yet he continues to conceal that
14:07
information from the executive branch
14:10
leaving our intelligence and law
14:12
enforcement communities scrambling to
14:16
try to figure it out and assess the
14:18
damage
14:19
and as far as we know the executive
14:22
branch has not demanded a meeting with
14:24
Trump to confront him and insist he
14:27
provide information that could help
14:30
mitigate the National Security damage
14:32
that could help protect the American
14:34
people
14:35
nor have they subpoenaed Trump to the
14:37
grand jury to compel him to provide that
14:40
information nor have they arrested him
14:44
even though they have probable cause
14:46
plus to do so as an incremental step to
14:51
obtaining that information
14:53
this inaction makes no sense from a law
14:57
enforcement perspective or from a
14:59
national security perspective
15:02
or from a Justice perspective
15:07
it makes no sense
15:11
because Justice
15:14
matters
15:17
friends as always please stay safe
15:18
please stay tuned and I look forward to
15:21
talking with you all again tomorrow
admin
Site Admin
 
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Tue Sep 06, 2022 2:28 am

Excerpts from the Full text of former President Donald Trump's Pennsylvania speech, by Donald Trump, 9/3/22

[T]he radical left Democrats… the corruption and extremism of Joe Biden and the radical Democrat party….J[oe Biden delivered] the most vicious, hateful and divisive speech ever delivered by an American president, vilifying 75 million citizens, plus another probably 75 to 150….He's an enemy of the state…The enemy of the state is him and the group that control him… His speech was hatred and anger…like the devil…

Philadelphia…is being devastated under Democrat rules. Devastated….the city set an all time murder record with 560 homicides, and it's on track to shatter that record. Again in 2022 numbers that nobody's ever seen other than some other Democrat-run cities. …And it's heading way up heading up in other cities that are run by Democrats…

Instead of trying to demonize half of the population, Biden and congressional Democrats should focus on stopping the killing and the bloodshed in Philadelphia and every other Democrat-run city in America where record death and destruction is taking place every single day….

There's only one party that's waging war in American democracy by censoring free speech, criminalizing dissent. You see that happening? Disarming law-abiding citizens, issuing lawless mandates and unconstitutional orders, imprisoning political protesters. That's what they're doing, rigging elections, weaponizing the Justice Department and the FBI like never ever before. And raiding and breaking into the homes of their political opponents….The danger to democracy comes from the radical left…we're going to stand up to this rising tyranny of sickness, lawlessness. And death….

And just a few weeks ago, you saw when we witnessed one of the most shocking abuses of power by any administration in American history, the shameful raid and breaking into my home Mar-a-Lago was a travesty of justice. That made a mockery of America's laws, traditions and principles. Before the entire world…The Biden administration invaded the home of their chief political opponent …on a phony pretext, getting permission from a highly political magistrate who they hand-picked late in the evening, just days before the break-in. And trampled upon my rights and civil liberties…They rifled through the First Lady's closet drawers and everything else, and even did a deep and ugly search of the room of my 16-year-old son, leaving everything they touched in far different conditions than it was when they started….

The FBI and the Justice Department have become vicious monsters, controlled by radical left scoundrels lawyers and the media…They're trying to silence me, and more importantly, they are trying to silence you…The evil and malice of this demented persecution of you and me…We are being assaulted by … the FBI and DOJ,.. Crooked Hillary Clinton …what else did she do? Bomb with a hammer, smashed her phone systems to smithereens after receiving the highest level of subpoena from the U.S. Congress….the exact same people are sending the FBI storming through the home of their number one political rival. It's a disgrace, a disgrace…they go in and take documents, dump them on the floor, stage a photoshoot, and pretend that I had done it like I had put them all over the floor….then they put out for public consumption, a picture which is seen all over the world. This is what they do. It's called disinformation. These are very dishonest, sick people. Very dishonest people.

Americans are sick of the lies, sick of the hoaxes and scams, and above all sick of the hypocrisy….This egregious abuse of the law…our beloved country is being taken over by the very people who turned democracies into dictatorships and into ultimately, ruination….we will save our nation from people who are trying to destroy it. It was not just my home that was raided last month. It was the hopes and dreams of every citizen…The radical Democrat party, the RINOs, the media and the Deep State have tried relentlessly to stop me and you.

First they fabricated the Russia Russia Russia scam you. So it was a total fabrication….impeachment hoax number one, impeachment hoax number two, and now the same exact people at Justice and the FBI, the same people along with outside scum, are at it again with the horrific raid of my home.

They just go on and on. …I tell this story on occasion very seldom because it's too sad to tell. But I tell this story because it's very important. Russia Russia Russia was a hoax. It was developed by Hillary Clinton and a group of people….Adam "Shifty" Schiff, watermelon head. Watermelon Head, he's a watermelon head…think how bad they are, think how evil they are. We're all fathers and your mothers and your children are great people, and all of the people are represented here—think how bad they are. They make up a story that's false….they will not fight it….they make up a story about Russia…they make up a story, Russia, Russia. Russia….Adam Schiff knows it's a fake story. He made it up with other people. They know it's a fake…They're so sad and say, "Donald Trump Jr. will be going to prison because of what he did with Russia." Now think of it, he knows the story is a scam. He knows the story's a fake. And he wants my son, who's a good kid, he wants my son to go to prison over something that they made up, that they know is a phony story, and has now been, as they say, fully debunked. In other words, it was a total lie ….My son's going to prison on something that they made, which is a total hoax. These are bad people. They're trying to destroy our country…

If I fly over a state, they send me before a grand jury. "Trump is up there. Let's see what can we do with the grand jury?"… the radical Democrats are engaging in a desperate attempt to keep me from returning to the White House…They want to stop us from completing our mission to bring back American values…

[M]illions and millions of people are pouring into our country…They're emptying their prisons into the United States of America….And we had a statement remember Keep America Great. But after they destroyed it…they've destroyed our country…Our leaders are a laughingstock….

I don't know if it's ever going to end, if you look at what's going on, because more and more facts are coming out, like the FBI with Facebook the other day can you believe, but you know what?... witch hunt…if they continue their craziness…

[A]ll they're good at is disinformation, they put out disinformation….Russia…the corruption and the people that were in charge of that scam are horrible, and they're the same people that we have now. They never leave. They never leave….a corrupt group of unelected tyrants who believe they can wield absolute power over you, with the help of a willing and very corrupt media….the deep state…We have to smash the grip of this vile and vindictive political class….our country will be destroyed …we're going to end up with Venezuela on steroids…

I never knew people could cheat like that. Not like last week. Weirdo. He's a weirdo. Mark Zuckerberg came to the White House, kissed my ass all night….the Hunter Biden laptop from Hell was Russian disinformation, even though they knew that was not true….The guy that came in with that stuff just got fired. He perp-walked, he was perp-walked out of the FBI on Friday….They perp-walked him because of all the things he did. So many more than what we're even talking about. The FBI made it clear that they did not want the truth about the criminality and influence peddling of the Biden family coming out before the election, because that would hurt the chances of Joe Biden who virtually never left his basement winning the election….

[W]hat the FBI did was corruption and election interference on a scale that we have never seen before in our country….the 2020 presidential election scam, including ballot stuffing and not adhering to the laws, rules and regulations of state legislatures, which is totally illegal. They just did whatever they wanted to do. And frankly, Republicans locally that ran things in a lot of states—should be ashamed of themselves. Should be ashamed of yourself. And a guy like Mitch McConnell, who allowed this stuff to happen, should be ashamed. You should be ashamed. The 2020 election was rigged, and now our country is being destroyed by people who got into office through cheating and through fraud.

Now watch, the cameras will all turn off as soon as I say that, because they're not allowed to put the cameras. They'll all turn off. They don't want to hear that. They don't want to hear that….Republican leadership just doesn't fight because in many cases, they are intimidated. They're afraid they're actually afraid…all they do well is cheat on elections…

The Mar-a-Lago raid was a desperate effort to distract from Joe Biden's record of misery and failure. The many disasters that our country in the world are now suffering would never ever have happened….take the five worst presidents in American history and put them together, and they would not have done the damage Joe Biden has done to our country in less than two years….Did you get screwed or what? Remember, I told you they were gonna do this to you. He lied during the debate. He said, "No, no, I would never do that." The first thing he did practically was kill the pipeline….

The radical Democrat Congress just passed one of the largest tax hikes in American history, pulverizing the middle class, and now you have the privilege of having 87,000 IRS agents go after you. And they've actually been approved. I'd never heard of this one. They got approved to carry guns so they can go after you with guns. You know, they don't want to have guns, but it's okay for the IRS. It's like an army….McConnell folded like a dog…West Virginia is not happy with Joe Manchin, because he killed coal, and they put taxes on coal. Clean beautiful coal, he killed it….Biden and the Democrat Congress created the worst inflation in 50 years, 9.1 percent. It is gonna go a lot higher.

And now they are making it worse with their immoral plan to wipe out hundreds of billions of dollars of debt for college graduates. Now think of this. How unfair is it, how unfair is it all of those, people, many of you are here, that paid and worked so hard. I saw they were doing a story about Pocahontas. That's Elizabeth Warren from Massachusetts….They paid for it on the backs of hardworking citizens, and they're raising your taxes. Remember this, you don't realize it, you're getting the biggest tax increase in history….You're getting the biggest tax increase in the history of our country. …

[ B]ut the "Green New Deal," which is like taking the money and throwing it out the window, and it's actually worse. It's actually like taking the money and destroying our country. Because it sets us back. Just like Germany, you know. Germany's back to building and opening its plants because they got so screwed up with a green new energy. They got carried away, windmills all over the place, killing all the birds, destroying all the values of homes, destroying the plains and fields -- beautiful plains. If you want to see a dead bird cemetery, go under a windmill sometime. It's not a pretty sight. It's also the single most expensive form of energy you can get….

See what they're doing with Iran. Iran was dying to make a deal with them, without a deal done, within one week after the election. And now we're going to pay them hundreds of billions of dollars, and they're gonna have nuclear weapons within a short period of time.

These people are crazy, this figure. I mean, they honestly, they can't be stupid. They must hate our country. They must hate our country. They surrendered our strength and our wisdom, our everything. They turned Afghanistan into the greatest humiliation our country has ever seen….We left American citizens behind. And we left $85 billion worth of the best military equipment in the entire world: planes and tanks and goggles, 700,000 rifles and AK-47s….

And now we have a war between Russia and Ukraine, with potentially hundreds of thousands, and even millions of people, are going to die. That would have never happened if I was your president. Would have never happened….

I ended Nord—can you imagine? Biden came in and he opened up the pipeline. …two and a half years of Democrat-inspired losses…

Great, great wall….They actually took it away, and put it in a secure area. And nobody can take it. That's just a terrible thing….

Our country is paying a terrible price for the rigged election….

[O]ur highest priorities must be to end the nightmare Joe Biden and congressional Democrats have created on our southern border. That nightmare….we have the worst border. I believe it's worse than any border anywhere in the world. Because no country would let people come into the country the way we have. Right here in Pennsylvania, last year two illegal alien criminals allegedly brutalized and bludgeoned women to death. On a busy street corner in Chester County, and illegal alien stands accused of grabbing a 33-year-old woman by the hair, pulling her down and around the ground, and stabbing her to death in front of her 7-year-old daughter. Just a few weeks ago, an illegal alien murderer was charged with shooting to death a 76-year-old man from Pennsylvania. He took a walk every morning and this guy killed him for no reason whatsoever. He didn't know, he didn't know him, didn't do anything. Just wanted to kill him.

The radical Democrat Congresses turned our country into one giant sanctuary for serious criminal aliens. We protect all of the criminals, we don't protect our own people. In fact, they raid our people….

Under a Democrat, all the streets of our great cities are drenched in the blood of innocent victims. Much of this crime is caused by drug dealers, who during the course of their lives will kill an average of 500 a month. Citizens, every drug dealer is responsible. And that doesn't include what they've done to families of people that haven't died, but families that are just devastated by what happened to their children and to themselves. Think of it, 500 people the average drug dealer kills. I'm calling for the death penalty for drug dealers which will upon stashes reduce drug distribution in our country on day one by 75 percent….We want the death penalty for drug dealers, and you will save millions of lives. You know, we're gonna lose 250,000 people I think this year, you know, just to go off for a second….

I got to know a lot of the foreign leaders and let me tell you, unlike our leader, they're at the top of their game. There's no one in like Central Casting that could play the role in Hollywood, all of Hollywood. Nobody can play the role of President Xi of China. Nobody could play the role. He's a fierce person. Putin, fierce, is smart….President Xi smart….He rules with an iron fist 1.5 billion people. Yeah, I'd say he's smart, wouldn't you say he's smart? So I'm with President Xi. …I'm with him. And I really had a great relationship with him. And then I asked him a question I said, "President," he's president for life, by the way, like thinking as a king. He said, "but I am not a king." I said, "You are to me, you're president for life. It's the same."…

"So President, President, you don't have a drug problem, but why? But why don't you have a drug problem?" "We have quick trial. It's a what is it quick. We immediately catch the drug dealer. We give him quick trial. And if he is guilty, which I would say probably,"… "If the drug dealer is guilty, he is immediately executed. So we have no drug problem."

And they have other countries like that to Singapore, other countries. And if you do that, you know, I'm told this and it's a hard thing to say, because calling for the death penalty stuff, but think of it….and I'm calling on Republicans and Democrats immediately to institute to get to 10, and institute the death penalty for drug dealers. You will no longer have a problem….

We should pass emergency funding to hire thousands and thousands more police officers nationwide to put violent criminals behind bars and keep them behind bars and also leave our police alone to do their job. Give them back the respect, they know what to do, and nobody can do it better, but they're under siege….You're always gonna have some bad apples, but they're very few, and we have a country that's become one of the most unsafe countries in the world….

Trump made a phone call, because he was challenging the election. So they're after me for perfect—by the way, perfect for you. Be very proud of me. Just like the call to Ukraine was a perfect call. The one in Atlanta was a perfect, perfect call …

Pennsylvania, your state's radical Democrat candidate for Senate. John Fetterman is the most dangerous Democrat. He's the most dangerous Democrat. He came to join Congress this year, and one of the most fringe far-left freak shows ever to seek election for any offense [office?]… This guy is a disaster. He comes in with a sweat suit on, I've never seen him wear a suit. A dirty dirty, dirty sweat suit. It's really disgusting. …Fetterman may dress like a teenager getting high in his parents basement. But he's a raging lunatic, hell bent on springing hardened criminals out of jail in the middle of the worst crime wave in Pennsylvania history. He wants everybody out of jail.

And, by the way, he wants to get rid of the police. Fetterman is a defund the police Marxist who's just pulling the wool over people's eyes, who literally said that if he had a magic wand and could fix one thing, he would end life sentences without parole for murderers, cop killers, rapists and other monsters. Criminals. That's what he said. He wants him to get them out of jail.

Get addicts? Yeah, let's put Trump in jail. Let's get these murderers, let these murderers out, put Trump in jail. That Trump is no damn good. He has worked his ass off for this country. Through his position on the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons, Fetterman has released a record number of dangerous criminals, back on the streets, many of which have created horrible, just atrocious crimes. He supports setting loose one out of every three inmates in your prisons. And he bragged that his goal is to get as many criminals out onto the street as quickly as possible.

Fetterman supports taxpayer-funded drug dens, and the complete decriminalization of illegal drugs, including heroin, cocaine, crystal meth, and ultra-lethal fentanyl. And by the way, he takes them himself—which would mean death and despair for every community in Pennsylvania, and every community in the United States of America.

Compare that to President Xi of China. A little different, wouldn't you say?

Fetterman openly supports deadly sanctuary cities, and he signed a pledge to ban fracking, which would demolish almost a million jobs in Pennsylvania….

Did you ever hear the statement by, I believe it was Lenin? Did anyone ever hear of—many people would say it with less sophistication -- Lenin, Lenin, I like the way they say that -- where he said the vote-counter is far more important than the candidate? Well, that turned out to be true. The vote-counter is far more important than the candidate, said by Lenin.

And while Fetterman wants to raise your taxes, he is a spoiled and entitled socialist loser who leached off his parents' money. You know, he lives on the parents money until he was 49 years old. And on top of it all, he's too cowardly to even show up and debate….

[Y]ou also have to defeat the far left Democrat candidate for governor, Little Josh Shapiro—who is so much like Fetterman, other than he's about half his height, which is fine. It's fine. I would say it's absolutely fine, as we don't want to tell height jokes. Not here to tell any jokes today. Not weight jokes, not height jokes. …

But he is a disaster for the state. … As attorney general, he presided over the complete disintegration of law and order, and letting things and criminals run wild….There is nothing to stop these animals from continuing…Shapiro supports sanctuary cities, and he sided with Marxist anti-American BLM radicals, and Antifa, and he's a vicious hater of free speech, and a hater of your Second Amendment. So he's gonna let criminals roam your streets, and he's not gonna let you have a gun to protect yourself. Shapiro is also using his office to shut children's schools, and force masks to be strapped to your children's faces, doing unimaginable harm.

And like Fetterman, Shapiro is a pro-abortion extremist, who supports totally unrestricted abortion on demand. Right through the ninth month…He supports it the right through the ninth month and beyond. You know what beyond means? After the baby is born, after the baby is born. So as I said in my debate with Crooked Hillary Clinton, rip the baby out of the womb at any time, and if the baby's already out of the womb, he's there too. "Just talk to the doctor."…

He wants to let things happen that no civilized person would allow. They don't allow it in other countries. No Pennsylvanian should listen to one word on abortion from these two twisted sickos who believe in killing and dismembering babies right up until that that time, that time of birth…

We were in a real fight with a lot of really sick, bad people….Doug Mastriano…he will not under any circumstance allow mail-in voting, because it's evil and corrupt….this mail-in voting in Pennsylvania, killing our country….

[R]adical Democrat socialist Matt Cartwright. That's another beauty. Who said he's all on board for the Green New Deal. Greatest waste of money in history. The Green New Deal. Why don't you just throw the money right out the window? And he absolutely supports defunding the police, and votes with Biden 100 percent of the time, so you know he can't be any good….

Now a woman is with us. She's very silent, very shy. Doesn't believe in using guns to protect yourself. Says anybody can come into my house anytime you'd like. No, no. She did a little ad I saw, her first time, and her ad was something to the effect. "Sure. Anybody can come into my house. He can be big." And she took this gun -- I never saw anybody used this gun -- Boom, put it back. And she said, "But he might not get out of my house alive." And I said, "I think I like her," Marjorie Taylor Greene….

It's time to finally and completely break the radical local education cartel….these people are crazy. Our children are captive to unhinged Marxist educators who are pushing inappropriate sexual, racial, and political material on our children from the youngest possible age….In addition, we will get critical race theory the hell out of our schools, out of our military and out of every part of our federal, state and local government…

We will also keep men out of women's sports. …So you have this swimmer…she was severely injured. She was injured by windburn because he went by her so fast. The wind burned the hell out of her….A person in a man's body. That's what they call it. This is supposed to be politically correct….

And no teacher should ever be allowed to teach transgender to our children without parental consent….

[We will work to] stop left wing censorship and to restore free speech in America. We don't have free speech….The Radical Left Democrat Party…They're against God, guns, oil, law enforcement, voter ID, tax cuts, regulation cuts, the Constitution, and they're against our founding fathers….

The way they win is to cheat in elections….They cheat like hell on elections all over the country, and they're really good at it….No more fake drop boxes by Zuckerberg and these people, no private money pouring into local election offices. And ultimately, we need same day voting with only paper ballots. Same day voting. Same day paper….

Right here in Pennsylvania, Democrats are still trying hard to rig your elections. Act 77 clearly violates your state Constitution, encouraging widespread abuse of mail-in ballots. And your radical left state Supreme Court just violated the Constitution a second time by overturning a decision by an unbiased lower court….

[W]e need a landslide so big that the radical left just cannot rig it….We will shut down Biden's border disaster…We will stop the crime wave in Democrat-run cities…These maniacs want the police officers go out and hire lawyers so they can defend themselves…we will override governors that don't look for law and order. We will hold China accountable for unleashing the virus upon the world. …and we will proudly uphold the Judeo-Christian values and principles of our nations….we will teach our children to love their country, honor our history and to always respect our great American flag….

[W]e are standing up against some of the most menacing forces, entrenched interests, and vicious opponents our people have ever seen. Despite great outside dangers, our greatest threat remains the sick, sinister, and evil people from within our own country. But no matter how big or powerful the corrupt radical left Democrats are—and they are corrupt and they are powerful….

We are a nation that is consumed by the radical left's Green New Deal, yet everyone knows that the Green New Deal will lead to our destruction. We are a nation that is surrendering all over, but in particular to Afghanistan, leaving behind dead soldiers, American citizens and 85 years' worth of the finest military equipment anywhere in the world. We are a nation that allowed Russia to devastate a country, Ukraine…We are a nation that has weaponized its law enforcement against the opposing political party like never before. We've got a Federal Bureau of Investigation that won't allow bad election-changing facts to be presented to the public, and a Department of Justice that refuses to investigate egregious acts of voting irregularities and fraud.

And we have a president who is cognitively impaired, and in no condition to lead our country and everybody knows it. We are a nation that no longer has a free and fair press. Fake news is all you get, and they are truly the enemy of the people. We are a nation where free speech is no longer allowed. Where crime is rampant like never before, where the economy has been collapsing, where more people died of COVID in 2021 than did in 2020.

We are a nation that is allowing Iran to build a massive nuclear weapon, which they are incredibly being allowed to do right now in China, to use trillions and trillions of dollars that is taken from us to build a military, to rival our own….

We are a nation that in many ways has become a joke. We are a nation that is hostile to liberty, freedom and faith. We are a nation whose economy is floundering, whose stores are not stocked. …

We will stand up to the radical left lunatics…the tyrants we're fighting do not stand even a chance. We are Americans, and Americans kneel to God and God alone….We are one movement, one people, one family and one glorious American nation.
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Tue Sep 06, 2022 8:41 pm

EXCERPTS FROM UNITED STATES’ RESPONSE TO MOTION FOR JUDICIAL OVERSIGHT AND ADDITIONAL RELIEF
DONALD J. TRUMP, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Defendant.
by Juan Antonio Gonzalez, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY and Jay I. Bratt, CHIEF, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, National Security Division
08/31/2022

The legal issues presented, and the relief requested in the filings, are narrow, notwithstanding the wide-ranging meritless accusations leveled against the government in the motion….

As an initial matter, the former President lacks standing to seek judicial relief or oversight as to Presidential records because those records do not belong to him. The Presidential Records Act makes clear that “[t]he United States” has “complete ownership, possession, and control” of them. 44 U.S.C. § 2202. Furthermore, this Court lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate Plaintiff’s Fourth Amendment challenges to the validity of the search warrant and his arguments for returning or suppressing the materials seized….

Even if the Court had jurisdiction to entertain Plaintiff’s claims, appointment of a special master is unnecessary and would significantly harm important governmental interests, including national security interests….Appointment of a special master to review materials potentially subject to claims of executive privilege would be particularly inappropriate because binding Supreme Court precedent forecloses Plaintiff’s argument that review of these materials by personnel within the Executive Branch raises any such privilege concerns. Furthermore, appointment of a special master would impede the government’s ongoing criminal investigation and—if the special master were tasked with reviewing classified documents—would impede the Intelligence Community from conducting its ongoing review of the national security risk that improper storage of these highly sensitive materials may have caused and from identifying measures to rectify or mitigate any damage that improper storage caused….

Mindful that the Court ruling on the present motion is not the same Court that authorized the search warrant from which this civil action results, the government provides below a detailed recitation of the relevant facts, many of which are provided to correct the incomplete and inaccurate narrative set forth in Plaintiff’s filings….

Throughout 2021, the United States National Archives and Records Administration (“NARA”) had ongoing communications with representatives of former President Trump in which it sought the transfer of what it perceived were missing records from his Administration….These communications ultimately resulted in the provision of fifteen boxes …When producing the Fifteen Boxes, the former President never asserted executive privilege over any of the documents nor claimed that any of the documents in the boxes containing classification markings had been declassified. …

“In its initial review of materials within those boxes, NARA identified items marked as classified national security information, up to the level of Top Secret and including Sensitive Compartmented Information and Special Access Program materials. NARA informed the Department of Justice about that discovery.”… Of most significant concern was that highly classified records were unfoldered, intermixed with other records, and otherwise unproperly [sic] identified.”… The NARA Referral was made on two bases: evidence that classified records had been stored at the Premises until mid-January 2022, and evidence that certain pages of Presidential records had been torn up….

DOJ sought access to the Fifteen Boxes in part “so that the FBI and others in the Intelligence Community could examine them.” … a representative of the former President requested an extension of the production date to April 29. See id….

counsel for the former President requested an additional extension before the materials were provided to the FBI and stated that in the event that another extension was not granted, the letter should be construed as “‘a protective assertion of executive privilege made by counsel for the former President.’” Id. In its May 10 response, NARA rejected both of counsel’s requests. First, NARA noted that significant time—four weeks—had elapsed since NARA first informed counsel of its intent to provide the documents to the FBI. Id. Second, NARA stated that the former President could not assert executive privilege to prevent others within the Executive Branch from reviewing the documents, calling that decision “not a close one.” Id. at 3. NARA rejected on the same basis counsel’s “‘protective assertion’” of privilege…. Although the former President could have taken legal action prior to May 12 to attempt to block the FBI’s access to the documents in the Fifteen Boxes, he did not do so….

Through its investigation,3 the FBI developed evidence indicating that even after the Fifteen Boxes were provided to NARA, dozens of additional boxes remained at the Premises that were also likely to contain classified information. Accordingly, DOJ obtained a grand jury subpoena, for which the former President’s counsel accepted service on May 11, 2022. … DOJ also sent the former President’s counsel a letter that suggested they could comply by “providing any responsive documents to the FBI at the place of their location” and by providing from the custodian a “sworn certification that the documents represent all responsive records.”…

The subpoena’s return date was May 24, 2022. Counsel sought an extension for complying. After initially denying the request, the government offered counsel an extension for complying with the subpoena until June 7, 2022. Counsel for the former President contacted DOJ on the evening of June 2, 2022, and requested that FBI agents meet him the following day to pick up responsive documents….

On June 3, 2022, three FBI agents and a DOJ attorney arrived at the Premises to accept receipt of the materials. In addition to counsel for the former President, another individual was also present as the custodian of records for the former President’s post-presidential office. When producing the documents, neither counsel nor the custodian asserted that the former President had declassified the documents or asserted any claim of executive privilege. Instead, counsel handled them in a manner that suggested counsel believed that the documents were classified: the production included a single Redweld envelope, double-wrapped in tape, containing the documents. The individual present as the custodian of records produced and provided a signed certification letter, which stated in part the following:

Based upon the information that has been provided to me, I am authorized to certify, on behalf of the Office of Donald J. Trump, the following: a. A diligent search was conducted of the boxes that were moved from the White House to Florida; b. This search was conducted after receipt of the subpoena, in order to locate any and all documents that are responsive to the subpoena; c. Any and all responsive documents accompany this certification; and d. No copy, written notation, or reproduction of any kind was retained as to any responsive document….

After producing the Redweld, counsel for the former President represented that all the records that had come from the White House were stored in one location—a storage room at the Premises (hereinafter, the “Storage Room”), and the boxes of records in the Storage Room were “the remaining repository” of records from the White House. Counsel further represented that there were no other records stored in any private office space or other location at the Premises and that all available boxes were searched…. the former President’s counsel explicitly prohibited government personnel from opening or looking inside any of the boxes that remained in the storage room, giving no opportunity for the government to confirm that no documents with classification markings remained.

Once in a secure government setting, the FBI conducted a preliminary review of the documents contained in the Redweld envelope. That preliminary document review revealed the following: 38 unique documents bearing classification markings, including 5 documents marked as CONFIDENTIAL, 16 documents marked as SECRET, and 17 documents marked as TOP SECRET. Further, the FBI agents observed markings reflecting sensitive compartments and dissemination controls. …

Through further investigation, the FBI uncovered multiple sources of evidence indicating that the response to the May 11 grand jury subpoena was incomplete and that classified documents remained at the Premises, notwithstanding the sworn certification made to the government on June 3. In particular, the government developed evidence that a search limited to the Storage Room would not have uncovered all the classified documents at the Premises. The government also developed evidence that government records were likely concealed and removed from the Storage Room and that efforts were likely taken to obstruct the government’s investigation. …

on August 5, 2022, the government applied to Magistrate Judge Reinhart for a search and seizure warrant… On the same date, Judge Reinhart found that probable cause existed that evidence of each of the crimes would be found at the Premises, and he authorized the search warrant. MJ Docket, D.E. 17 at 2.

Pursuant to the search warrant, the government was permitted to search the “‘45 Office’ [the former President’s office space at the Premises], all storage rooms, and all other rooms or areas within the premises used or available to be used by [the former President] and his staff and in which boxes or documents could be stored, including all structures or buildings on the estate” but not “areas currently (i.e., at the time of the search) being occupied, rented, or used by third parties…Judge Reinhart authorized the government to seize any evidence of the applicable crimes. Id. at 2, 4. Importantly, the government was authorized by the warrant to seize “[a]ny physical documents with classification markings, along with any containers/boxes (including any other contents) in which such documents are located, as well as any other containers/boxes that are collectively stored or found together with the aforementioned documents and containers/boxes” and any government or Presidential records created during the former President’s Administration….

the government seized thirty-three items of evidence, mostly boxes (hereinafter, the “Seized Evidence”), falling within the scope of Attachment B to the search warrant because they contained documents with classification markings or what otherwise appeared to be government records. Three classified documents that were not located in boxes, but rather were located in the desks in the “45 Office,” were also seized….

in all, over one hundred unique documents with classification markings—that is, more than twice the amount produced on June 3, 2022, in response to the grand jury subpoena—were seized. Certain of the documents had colored cover sheets indicating their classification status. See, e.g., Attachment F (redacted FBI photograph of certain documents and classified cover sheets recovered from a container in the “45 office”).

The classification levels ranged from CONFIDENTIAL to TOP SECRET information, and certain documents included additional sensitive compartments that signify very limited distribution. In some instances, even the FBI counterintelligence personnel and DOJ attorneys conducting the review required additional clearances before they were permitted to review certain documents.

Notwithstanding counsel’s representation on June 3, 2022, that materials from the White House were only located in the Storage Room, classified documents were found in both the Storage Room and in the former President’s office. Moreover, the search cast serious doubt on the claim in the certification (and now in the Motion) that there had been “a diligent search” for records responsive to the grand jury subpoena. In the storage room alone, FBI agents found 76 documents bearing classification markings…. That the FBI, in a matter of hours, recovered twice as many documents with classification markings as the “diligent search” that the former President’s counsel and other representatives had weeks to perform calls into serious question the representations made in the June 3 certification and casts doubt on the extent of cooperation in this matter….

The privilege review team identified only a limited subset of potentially attorney-client privileged documents….

Plaintiff asks for a special master and related relief in anticipation of moving for the return of property under Criminal Rule 41(g)….

But, “[ i]n order for an owner of property to invoke Rule 41(g), he must show that he had a possessory interest in the property seized by the government.”…

Plaintiff has no property interest in any Presidential records (including classified records) seized from the Premises….44 U.S.C. § 2202…

Neither of Plaintiff’s filings addresses or even cites that statutory provision. …

Because these records do not belong to Plaintiff, Rule 41(g) gives him no right to have them returned. And because Plaintiff has no such right, this Court should not appoint a special master to review Presidential records for the purpose of entertaining potential claims of executive privilege. At most, Plaintiff can seek return of his personal property….

Plaintiff asks this Court to order “the Government to return any item seized pursuant to the Search Warrant that was not within the scope of the Search Warrant.”… Although Plaintiff does not specify what material he contends was seized in excess of the search warrant, certain personal effects were commingled with classified material in the Seized Evidence, and they remain in the custody of the United States because of their evidentiary value. Personal effects without evidentiary value will be returned.

Nonetheless, contrary to Plaintiff’s contention, personal effects in these circumstances are not subject to return under Criminal Rule 41(g)… Evidence of commingling personal effects with documents bearing classification markings is relevant evidence of the statutory offenses under investigation….

they were commingled with documents bearing classification markings that were indisputably within the scope of the search warrant….

Although the former President may have a property interest in his personal effects, he cannot demonstrate callous disregard of the Fourth Amendment considering the patient exhaustion of less-intrusive methods to obtain return of documents with classification markings from the Premises and FBI Special Agents’ scrupulous adherence to the terms of the search warrant, which permitted them to seize the entire “containers/boxes” in which the documents with classification markings were stored, as well as other containers/boxes stored collectively. Moreover, the former President has not established irreparable injury in the deprivation of his personal property….

the former President has failed to establish that he would suffer any injury absent an injunction—let alone an irreparable injury. First, any Presidential records seized pursuant to the search warrant belong to the United States, not to the former President. 44 U.S.C. § 2202. As such, the former President cannot claim that he is personally injured by a review of those records by personnel within the Executive Branch….Any possible injury is thus, at most, an incremental and theoretical “harm” based on further review of materials that the Case Team has already reviewed and inventoried.

Finally, the fact that the former President filed this motion two weeks after the search occurred—and only just effected service on the United States on August 29—“militates against a finding of irreparable harm.”… a party’s failure to act with speed or urgency in moving for a preliminary injunction necessarily undermines a finding of irreparable harm.”… Typically, parties who seek the appointment of a special master following the execution of a search warrant make such requests immediately. … The need for promptness when a party seeks appointment of a special master is obvious: the government may begin reviewing materials as soon as they are seized, and a delay of even two weeks may well mean—as it does here—that the government has reviewed all of the seized materials by the time relief is sought….

DOJ is in the midst of an ongoing criminal investigation pertaining to potential violations of the Espionage Act, 18 U.S.C. § 793(e), as well as obstruction of justice, 18 U.S.C. § 1519, and unlawful concealment or removal of government records, 18 U.S.C. § 2071. The Intelligence Community is also reviewing the seized documents to assess the potential risk to national security that would result if these materials were disclosed while they were unlawfully stored at the Premises. An injunction barring any further review of these documents would therefore not only hinder an ongoing criminal investigation, but would also thwart entirely an ongoing and sensitive review of risks to national security. For the same reasons, an injunction would plainly be “adverse to the public interest.” …

Appointment of a special master to review potential privilege claims… would do little or nothing to protect any legitimate interests that Plaintiff may have while impeding the government’s ongoing criminal investigation, as well as the Intelligence Community’s review of potential risks to national security that may have resulted from the improper storage of the seized materials….

The former President asserts (D.E. 1 at 14-16) that review by a special master is necessary because the records at issue are presumptively subject to executive privilege. But even if the former President had actually asserted executive privilege with regard to any of the seized documents (which he has not), and even if he had statutory authority to do so (which is not established), such an assertion would fail here because this case involves the recovery and review of executive records by executive officials performing core executive functions. The Supreme Court has made clear that a former President may not successfully assert executive privilege “against the very Executive Branch in whose name the privilege is invoked.”… vital Executive Branch needs far outweigh any limited burden on the general interests served by the executive privilege…

Even if the former President had attempted to assert executive privilege (which he has not done),12 that assertion would not justify any restrictions on Executive Branch access to the documents here…. the former President cites no case—and the government is aware of none—in which executive privilege has been successfully invoked to prohibit the sharing of documents within the Executive Branch.

To the contrary, in what appears to be the only case in which such an assertion has ever been made, Nixon v. GSA, the Supreme Court rejected former President Nixon’s assertion that a statute requiring the General Services Administration13 to take custody of and review recordings and documents created during his presidency violated either the separation of powers or executive privilege….

First, Plaintiff did not convey the seized materials to NARA as required by the PRA. As such, he cannot now maintain that he has a statutory right to make privilege assertions pursuant to that law. Second, even if the PRA process were available to Plaintiff, it does not follow that he could successfully assert executive privilege against the Executive Branch. To the contrary, the PRA makes clear that it does not expand the scope of executive privilege….

These principles resolve the former President’s request for a special master. As in Nixon v. GSA, this case involves potential assertions of executive privilege by a former President against the “Executive Branch in whose name the privilege is invoked.” 433 U.S. at 447- 48. This case does not implicate any disclosure outside the Executive Branch, and the review of the records at issue is being conducted “by personnel in the Executive Branch sensitive to executive concerns.”…

even in a case where records might be withheld from the public pursuant to a valid assertion of privilege, there would not be a basis for withholding them from review by the Executive Branch itself in pursuit of its core executive functions….

In United States v. Nixon, the Supreme Court held that the need for evidence in a criminal trial outweighed even a sitting President’s assertion of executive privilege over presidential communications. The Court explained that, although the “[t]he interest in preserving confidentiality is weighty indeed and entitled to great respect,” 418 U.S. at 712, assertions of the privilege must also “be considered in light of our historic commitment to the rule of law. This is nowhere more profoundly manifest than in our view that the twofold aim (of criminal justice) is that guilt shall not escape or innocence suffer,”…

“[t]he generalized assertion of privilege must yield to the demonstrated, specific need for evidence in a pending criminal trial.”…

The Executive Branch’s review here also serves another compelling interest that was not at issue in Nixon: The records at issue include sensitive and highly classified documents…. This Court should be particularly reluctant to order disclosure of highly classified materials to a special master absent an especially strong showing that such a step is necessary….

to the extent the former President’s arguments rest on a claim that he has been deprived of his rights under the PRA to assert potential privilege claims, see D.E. 1 at 12, the former President forfeited the ability to rely on the PRA by failing to provide his records to NARA, as the law requires. Had the seized records been returned to NARA—upon the former President’s departure from office, or during the many months afterward in which NARA sought return of the missing records—Plaintiff could have at least tendered a claim of executive privilege to the Archivist with regard to any materials sought by DOJ…. The government’s seizure of these records through use of a search warrant is a direct result of Plaintiff’s own conduct…

the government has an urgent interest in continuing its review of these materials, both for purposes of its criminal investigation and to assess potential national security risks caused by improper storage of classified records. Appointment of a special master would undoubtedly delay both processes—including because a special master would likely need to obtain a security clearance and specific authorization from relevant entities within the Intelligence Community to review particularly sensitive materials….

executive privilege exists not “for the benefit of the President as an individual, but for the benefit of the Republic,”…

“[I]t is well-established that filter teams—also called ‘taint teams’—are routinely employed to conduct privilege reviews.”… Tellingly, the cases relied upon by the former President that have employed special masters rather than filter teams invariably involve the search of law offices…. The former President analogizes searches of law offices to the present search… searches of law offices and the instant search do not at all involve similar privilege concerns….

courts have cited the complexities posed when materials are seized from attorneys involving multiple clients…. ‘[m]ost of the cases cited by the movants concern the searches of criminal defense attorneys or law firms that performed some criminal defense work’… as there was a risk that the members of the filter team would at some point be involved in the criminal investigation and/or prosecution of other clients who were not the subject of the underlying investigation.”)… “under certain exceptional circumstances, the appointment of a special master to review materials seized from an attorney may be appropriate. Those circumstances may exist where the search involves the files of a criminal defense attorney with cases adverse to the United States Attorney’s Office . . . .”)… “responsiveness and privilege issues raised” in the search of a law firm office as “exceptional”).

The attorney-client privilege issues in this case present none of the complexities associated with a search of a law firm…. Moreover, as noted above, the volume of documents is small, and the government’s filter team has already completed its review of them. …

the Court should not appoint a special master. If the Court decides to do so, as directed by the Court, the government proposes the following conditions….

• The special master’s duties should be limited to assessing Plaintiff’s claims of attorney-client privilege over the set of potentially privileged documents identified by the Privilege Review Team…. there is no precedent or basis for appointing a special master to review documents for executive privilege and barring current Executive Branch law enforcement officials or officers from continuing to access that material, including to assess national security risks.

• If the special master must be permitted to review classified documents, in order to avoid unnecessary delay, the special master should already possess a Top Secret/SCI security clearance….

• Any documents that reflect the special master’s rulings, including orders, privilege logs, or other records, should be preserved and filed under seal…

• because the central disputed issues concern privilege, an issue that courts traditionally decide, there is no need to apply any deferential standard of review to the special master’s determinations….

• final decisions on all disputed documents to be made by September 30, 2022….

the Court should deny Plaintiff’s Motion for Judicial Oversight…

***

NATIONAL ARCHIVES
Archivist of the United States

DAVID S. FERRIERO…

The Honorable Carolyn B. Maloney
Chairwoman
Committee on Oversight and Reform
U.S. House of Representatives…

you asked a number of questions relating to "the 15 boxes of presidential records that the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) recently recovered from former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence." Please see our responses…

5. Is NARA aware of any additional presidential records from the Trump Administration that may be missing or not yet in NARA's possession?

Answer: NARA has identified certain social media records that were not captured and preserved by the Trump Administration. NARA has also learned that some White House staff conducted official business using non-official electronic messaging accounts that were not copied or forwarded into their official electronic messaging accounts, as required by section 2209 of the PRA. NARA has already obtained or is in the process of obtaining some of those records.

6. What efforts has NARA taken, and is NARA taking, to ensure that any additional records that have not been turned over to NARA are not lost or destroyed?

Answer: NARA has asked the representatives of former President Trump to continue to search for any additional Presidential records that have not been transferred to NARA, as required by the Presidential Records Act….

8. Is NARA aware of presidential records that President Trump destroyed or attempted to destroy without the approval of NARA? If so, please provide a detailed description of such records, the actions taken by President Trump to destroy or attempt to destroy them, and any actions NARA has taken to recover or preserve these documents.

Answer: In June 2018, NARA learned from a press report in Politico that textual Presidential records were being torn up by former President Trump and that White House staff were attempting to tape them back together. NARA sent a letter to the Deputy Counsel to the President asking for information about the extent of the problem and how it is being addressed. The White House Counsel's Office indicated that they would address the matter. After the end of the Trump Administration, NARA learned that additional paper records that had been torn up by former President Trump were included in the records transferred to us. Although White House staff during the Trump Administration recovered and taped together some of the torn-up records, a number of other torn-up records that were transferred had not been reconstructed by the White House….

***

Notes:

1 Plaintiff also sought a more detailed receipt for the property seized during the August 8, 2022 execution of the search warrant. … The Court ordered the government to file under seal “[a] more detailed Receipt for Property specifying all property seized pursuant to the search warrant.” D.E. 29 at 2. The government filed today under seal, in accordance with the Court’s order, the more detailed receipt. Although the receipt of property already provided to Plaintiff at the time of the search…

the government cannot publicly describe the sources of its evidence, particularly while the investigation remains ongoing. As Judge Reinhart concluded, revealing this type of information could “impede the ongoing investigation through obstruction of justice and witness intimidation or retaliation.”…

5 Plaintiff states that “[t]here is no criminal enforcement mechanism or penalty” in the Presidential Records Act, and then suggests that DOJ may have “recognize[d] that deficiency, and then decide[d] to re-categorize this case as relating to national security materials[ ]simply to manufacture a basis to seek a search warrant” and may have “mischaracterize[d] the types of documents it sought.” D.E. 1 at 12. These accusations are belied by the statutes cited in the government’s search warrant, which make clear that this investigation is not simply about efforts to recover improperly retained Presidential records. Moreover, 18 U.S.C. § 2071 criminalizes the concealment or removal of government records, including Presidential records.

6 Plaintiff repeatedly claims that his passports were outside the scope of the warrant and improperly seized, and that the government, in returning them, has admitted as much. See D.E. 1 at 2 & n.2; D.E. 28 at 3, 8, 9. These claims are incorrect. Consistent with Attachment B to the search warrant, the government seized the contents of a desk drawer that contained classified documents and governmental records commingled with other documents. The other documents included two official passports, one of which was expired, and one personal passport, which was expired. The location of the passports is relevant evidence in an investigation of unauthorized retention and mishandling of national defense information; nonetheless, the government decided to return those passports in its discretion….

8 Plaintiff’s motion cites Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(5) and (c)(1) and this Court’s Local Rule 26.1(g) in support of this request. D.E. 1 at 15. These provisions relate to privilege claims during pre-trial discovery in civil cases, not privilege claims regarding materials seized pursuant to a search warrant. The former President’s request is more properly construed as a request for a preliminary injunction under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65….

12 Plaintiff’s motion does not purport to include any assertion of executive privilege by the former President; instead, it refers (at 15) to “potentially privileged materials” and appears to suggest that a special master should determine in the first instance whether the privilege applies. Plaintiff's assertion that because the documents “were created during his term as President,” they are “‘presumptively privileged’ until proven otherwise,” D.E. 1 at 15 (quoting United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683, 713 (1974)), is therefore incorrect. That presumption arises only “[u]pon receiving a claim of privilege from the Chief Executive.” United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. at 713. Additionally, a former President can invoke executive privilege only with respect to communications made “‘in performance of [the President's] responsibilities.’” Nixon v. GSA, 433 U.S. at 449 (quoting United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. at 711)….

14 Plaintiff also cites Armstrong v. Bush, 924 F.2d 282, 290 (D.C. Cir. 1991) for the proposition that he has “virtually complete control” over Presidential records during his term of office, see D.E. 1 at 12, but Armstrong is wholly inapposite. The court in that case was discussing control of Presidential records by a sitting President, not a former President. See id. As the sources relied upon by Armstrong make clear, that control terminates at the end of the President’s time in office…. the PRA provides for “presidential control of records creation, management, and disposal during the President’s term of office”…

16 Notably, however, the former President never interposed any executive privilege objection to returning the set of classified documents that was provided by his custodian of records on June 3.

17 The former President also cites to a Justice Manual provision, “9-13.420 § F,” for the proposition that prosecutors must consider “[w]ho will conduct the review, i.e., a privilege team, a judicial officer, or a special master.” He fails to mention that this provision is under a provision that is specific to searches of attorney offices; Section 9-13.420 is titled “Searches of Premises of Subject Attorneys.” This provision reinforces that searches of attorney offices are uniquely fraught and may require different procedures than the searches of non-attorney premises such as this one.
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Tue Sep 06, 2022 9:09 pm

A Ruling Untethered to the Law: By appointing a special master to review the Mar-a-Lago documents, Judge Aileen Cannon gave Trump the special treatment he asked for—and undermined the values of her profession.
by Andrew Weissmann
The Atlantic
SEPTEMBER 6, 2022, 1:57 PM ET

About the author: Andrew Weissmann is a professor of practice at New York University School of Law, the former lead prosecutor in the Special Counsel’s Office, and the former general counsel of the FBI. He is the author of Where Law Ends: Inside the Mueller Investigation.

One of the most dispiriting aspects of the decision yesterday by Federal District Court Judge Aileen Cannon—which granted former President Donald Trump’s request to appoint a special master to review the evidence seized from Mar-a-Lago by the FBI—is that it undermines the work of all the other judges who have tried to adhere to their oath to “administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich, and … faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent” on the office. Her ruling is untethered to the law and presents a skewed recitation of the facts. Her actions make the question “Who appointed the judge?” a sadly relevant one in evaluating a judicial opinion.

Federal courts, with the notable exception of the Supreme Court, have generally fared well in providing a strong check and balance on attempted executive-branch abuses by Donald Trump. His efforts to have the courts further his bid to overthrow the will of the people in the last election have been rejected by judges nominated to the bench by both parties. The rule of law was on full display; courts around the nation repeatedly revealed a forum where facts, legal precedent, and logical reasoning have pride of place.

Cannon’s opinion, by contrast, is so deeply flawed that it’s hard to know where to begin a critique. Let’s start with the unequal application of the law. Although Trump wallows in feigned claims of persecution, in fact he has been privileged by the Justice Department, and now Cannon, in a manner unheard of for any other defendant. Every defendant would relish the opportunity to delay a criminal investigation by having a court enjoin the government from investigation, but that never happens. The time-honored recourse for someone aggrieved by a search is not to have an unelected judge unilaterally decide to enjoin the constitutionally delegated power of the executive branch to investigate and prosecute. The defense remedy is in a post-indictment motion to suppress evidence from a search.

Cannon addresses the departure from normal practice by inventing a new right for the former president, on the grounds that a post-indictment remedy would be insufficient for him to reclaim his good name. Leaving aside the question of whether her observation about the irreparable consequences of a delay in when he could assert a claim is factually supported, there are at least two other issues with this ruling. First, it is hard to see how her conclusion about harm would or should be cabined to Trump: Why would others under investigation not have the same claim? Is the extra protection of a special master—and the delay it entails—applicable to all public figures? Would we now have a new rule limiting investigations of government officials like Bill Clinton, as well as leaders of large corporations like Enron and Volkswagen and start-ups like Theranos? And if so, how is a rule that offers special privileges to the most advantaged members of our society consistent with providing equal justice for all? Cannon does not deal with any of this. Her ruling, in this respect, resembles the decision of former Attorney General Bill Barr to extend benefits to Roger Stone and Michael Flynn that were simultaneously denied to other defendants. The law, it seems, is simply different for Trump and his close allies.

The second problem with this aspect of Cannon’s decision is how completely unnecessary a special master is in this case. A review of potential attorney-client communications applies, at most, to a small subset of documents (no more than 500 or so pages, the filings suggest). These communications would have to be with Trump’s private counsel because he has no attorney-client privilege with the White House Counsel’s Office, which represents the office of the president and not him personally. And it is highly unlikely that any such communications relate to the issue of Trump’s theft and retention of government documents. But even assuming there is a risk that attorney-client communications might be relevant to the investigation, the Department of Justice has a tried-and-true method for dealing with it that doesn’t require a special master.

This issue surfaced during Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, which I worked on. When the special counsel received court authorization to search Paul Manafort’s Virginia home, a team of FBI agents who were not part of the special counsel’s investigation, known as a “taint team,” conducted it. That same day, as soon as the search was completed, we called Manafort’s counsel and alerted them that all of the evidence from the search would be made available to them, so that they could review and flag any materials they believed were privileged. The taint team resolved all of the flagged issues, and the process proceeded rapidly and without a hitch. Importantly, it did not require a special master, even though the volume of material (including electronic data, which the Mar-a-Lago search did not uncover) significantly outstripped the volume at issue in the Trump search. But Cannon did not seek to determine whether there were in fact any disputes between the parties about any such documents or explore with the parties the workability of a taint team.

Two other aspects of her decision are also worth noting. Cannon includes within the scope of the special master’s review documents that may raise executive privilege. She does not explain how the former president has the power to assert executive privilege; how executive privilege could restrict documents from being shared with the executive branch (which DOJ is part of); how it could apply to any documents at Mar-a-Lago that emanated from agencies like the CIA, NSA, or FBI; or why it would not be outweighed by the fact that the documents are needed in a criminal investigation (an interest that the Supreme Court found would overcome a privilege assertion by former President Richard Nixon). And even if some of the documents are covered by executive privilege, the documents would, by law, still have to go to the National Archives and not be returned to the person who absconded with them.

To understand the illogic of her decision, imagine the following scenario. I rob a bank of $1 million and stash the bags of cash in my hotel room. My gloves and wallet fall into one bag by accident. The police search my hotel room pursuant to a court-authorized warrant that permits seizure of the cash, gloves, and wallet. The judge appoints a special master to review the evidence seized, including every last dollar, even though I have no right to the return of anything that was seized. And she enjoins the criminal case for the duration.

But there is more: To support her decision, Cannon misleadingly claims that the current president has not asserted executive privilege. That is a shameful sleight of hand. If she really had a concern about President Joe Biden’s position, she need only have asked at oral argument. She did not. Instead, she engaged in a tortured reading of the evidence that the Justice Department did present to her. A letter sent by the archives to Trump’s counsel in May noted that Biden had authorized sharing the 15 boxes with the FBI and left to the archives the determination as to whether the documents taken from Mar-a-Lago were covered by executive privilege, and that, in consultation with the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, it had decided that this was not a close call and rejected the claim. Her opinion mentions the May archives letter, so we know she was aware of it, but she failed to address it or even note its executive-privilege discussion.

Finally, Cannon mercifully carves out the Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s review from the injunction she issued preventing the Department of Justice from using any of the search material in its criminal investigation. She gives no reason why the two should be treated disparately, but presumably it’s because the DNI could not indict Trump. But the work of the DNI is not easily separated from that of the Justice Department—indeed, the DNI’s letter to Congress makes clear that the two agencies are jointly conducting the review. That makes sense because the Justice Department is necessary to that review: To evaluate risks and harms, the DNI needs to know who touched and had access to the documents. It needs Mar-a-Lago visitor records, surveillance records, emails, and copier records, and it needs to interview witnesses. All of that requires grand-jury subpoenas, which also means that Department of Justice lawyers and FBI agents must be involved. And are Attorney General Merrick Garland, a prominent member of the intelligence community, and the experienced Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco supposed to recuse themselves from the DNI review so they can remain on the criminal investigation?

These are just a few of the factual and legal deficiencies in Cannon’s decision. It may help Trump in the short term, but by failing to apply the law evenhandedly, she has done lasting damage to the judiciary.

Andrew Weissmann is a professor of practice at New York University School of Law, the former lead prosecutor in the Special Counsel’s Office, and the former general counsel of the FBI. He is the author of Where Law Ends: Inside the Mueller Investigation.
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Tue Sep 06, 2022 9:23 pm

Should DOJ Appeal Judge Cannon’s Incredibly Flawed Trump Special Master Ruling?
by Norman L. Eisen and Fred Wertheimer
Slate
SEPT 06, 20229:06 AM

On Aug. 27, Judge Aileen Cannon issued a preliminary order indicating that she was inclined to grant Donald Trump’s request that she appoint a special master to review the documents that the government seized during its court-approved search of Mar-a-Lago last month. So her order on Monday enjoining the Department of Justice from using those materials in its ongoing criminal investigation until a special master completes his or her review was in some ways not a surprise. Now that we know the grounds for Judge Cannon’s view and the scope of her order, though, we must respectfully but strongly disagree.

First, at the heart of the order is the assumption that Trump could have a right to the return of presidential records under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41(g), which permits the return of property seized by an unlawful search and seizure. Presidential records are, by the clear terms of the Presidential Records Act, the property of the U.S. government—not the former president.

The order ignores the impossibility of returning these documents to Trump under these circumstances: There are more than 103 classified documents, including 18 designated as Top Secret—signifying that their mishandling risks exceptionally grave damage to national security. And that’s before factoring in other indicia of danger, like the recent revelation that investigators seized 48 empty folders with classified markings, which raises the question: Where are the documents? It is difficult to contemplate any basis for the return of even a single classified document under any circumstances—and certainly while the contents of these folders are unaccounted for.


Indeed, Judge Cannon herself acknowledges the danger to national security posed by Trump’s request to the extent it would stop the Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s ongoing national security review. The order enjoins the government from further review and use of these documents for investigative purposes, not for purposes of intelligence classification and national security assessments. In this way, the order is inconsistent; carving out the national security assessment from the injunction undercuts the assumption that Trump may be entitled to the return of these documents, as well as the premise that the ongoing criminal investigation must be halted. How can we contemplate the possible return of documents that could cost the lives of American agents to someone who has already treated these records with such neglect?

Further, how can national security officials make determinations on how best to protect the nation if criminal investigators are enjoined from taking investigative steps that may also serve that very purpose? Indeed, some government officials would typically be part of both of these reviews—such as the Attorney General himself. The order’s false dichotomy does not take account of those realities that are needed to protect us all.

Second, to the extent the order authorizes a special master to review the materials for assertions of executive privilege, there is no basis for this ruling. Both federal statutory law in the form of the PRA and precedent including Nixon v. GSA show that Trump cannot successfully assert executive privilege against the executive branch as it conducts executive functions.
(Although this essay is written in our personal capacities only, we unpacked this law in detail in an amicus brief in this case in which we participated.)

Moreover, as the order recognizes in a footnote, to the extent that Trump wants to litigate the executive branch’s executive privilege determinations, the exclusive jurisdiction lies within the federal courts for the District of Columbia. Trump’s failure to properly assert his claims in that jurisdiction is no reason for this court to step in.

While no case holds that a special master should resolve this kind of dispute between a current and former president, the order notes a request that the Department of Justice once made to have a special master review potentially privileged documents collected from the office of one of Trump’s attorneys. But the court in that case also did not rule on the issue of executive privilege, nor did the special master’s reports make any mention of reviewing for executive privilege. And DOJ’s statement about a then-sitting president has no applicability here, where the PRA sets up a procedure for adjudicating disputes between a current and former president with jurisdiction in D.C.

Third, the question of whether there should be a special master for the smaller quantum of attorney-client privilege materials (here, about 500 pages), is a closer one. Though reasonable people may disagree, the ruling was not extraordinary in this regard. But to bootstrap that narrow ruling into a review of the full 11,000 documents for assertions of executive privilege that are beyond the purview of a special master is wrong.

Fourth, the DOJ now faces a weighty decision regarding appeal. This order is appealable under 28 U.S.C. § 1292 because the court enjoined the government from continued use of the materials in its criminal investigation.
It might seem faster to simply to get on with appointing a special master, particularly since we are now within the period before an election when the DOJ prefers to stay out of political matters. If the document review could be wrapped up within that time frame, perhaps the best approach for the DOJ is to allow the review to proceed.

On the other hand, there will undoubtedly be disagreements over particular documents that will then need to be referred by the special master for resolution by the judge, and those decisions could then be subject to appeal. Nobody knows how much time that review will require. And the DOJ may not be able to afford leaving this order’s precedent on the books, given its numerous analytical flaws.

Accordingly, the DOJ faces a tough call. Whatever one’s views based on the public record, DOJ is closest to this, including internal investigatory considerations that may not be obvious to outsiders. The ultimate determination is theirs.

Fifth and finally, if there is one aspect of the decision that summarizes why we must take exception, it is the order’s repeated statements about how special a former president is, such as noting that “the stigma associated with the subject seizure is in a league of its own” due to the “Plaintiff’s former position as President of the United States.”

To the contrary, in the United States, everybody should be subject to the same legal rules. If any of us had engaged in this course of conduct, including the long pattern of apparent deception and concealment of these documents, we would have been subject to a search warrant and, indeed, potential prosecution, long ago. If for no other reason than that, the DOJ decision on appealing the court decision should consider the foundational principle here at stake. In the United States, no one is above the law.
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Tue Sep 06, 2022 10:26 pm

Order
by Judge Aileen M. Cannon
Donald J. Trump, Plaintiff, v. United States of America, Defendant.
9/5/22



UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
WEST PALM BEACH DIVISION
CASE NO. 22-81294-CIV-CANNON

DONALD J. TRUMP,
Plaintiff,
v.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Defendant.

ORDER

THIS CAUSE comes before the Court upon Plaintiff’s Motion for Judicial Oversight and Additional Relief (the "Motion") [ECF No. 1], filed on August 22, 2022. The Court has reviewed the Motion, Plaintiff’s Supplemental Filing [ECF No. 28], the Government’s Response in Opposition [ECF No. 48], Plaintiff’s Reply [ECF No. 58], and the related filings [ECF Nos. 31, 39, 40 (sealed)]. The Court also held a hearing on the Motion on September 1, 2022.

Pursuant to the Court’s equitable jurisdiction and inherent supervisory authority, and mindful of the need to ensure at least the appearance of fairness and integrity under the extraordinary circumstances presented, Plaintiff’s Motion [ECF No. 1] is GRANTED IN PART. The Court hereby authorizes the appointment of a special master to review the seized property for personal items and documents and potentially privileged material subject to claims of attorney- client and/or executive privilege. Furthermore, in natural conjunction with that appointment, and consistent with the value and sequence of special master procedures, the Court also temporarily enjoins the Government from reviewing and using the seized materials for investigative purposes pending completion of the special master’s review or further Court order. This Order shall not impede the classification review and/or intelligence assessment by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence ("ODNI") as described in the Government’s Notice of Receipt of Preliminary Order [ECF No. 31 p. 2].

RELEVANT BACKGROUND

The following is a summary of the record based on the parties’ submissions and oral presentation.1 Throughout 2021, former President Donald J. Trump ("Plaintiff") and the National Archives and Records Administration ("NARA") were engaged in conversations concerning records from Plaintiff’s time in office [ECF No. 1 p. 4; ECF No. 48-1 p. 2].2 In January 2021, as a product of those conversations, Plaintiff transferred fifteen boxes (the "Fifteen Boxes") from his personal residence to NARA [ECF No. 1 pp. 4–5; ECF No. 48 p. 5; ECF No. 48-1 p. 6]. Upon initial review of the Fifteen Boxes, NARA identified the items contained therein as newspapers, magazines, printed news articles, photos, miscellaneous printouts, notes, presidential correspondence, personal records, post-presidential records, and classified records [ECF No. 48 p. 5]. NARA subsequently informed the Department of Justice ("DOJ") of the contents of the boxes, claiming that some items contained markings of "classified national security information" [ECF No. 48 p. 5].

On April 12, 2022, NARA notified Plaintiff that it intended to provide the Fifteen Boxes to the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI") the following week [ECF No. 48 p. 5]. Plaintiff then requested an extension on the contemplated delivery so that he could determine the existence of any privileged material [ECF No. 48-1 p. 7]. The White House Counsel’s Office granted the request [ECF No. 48-1 p. 7]. On May 10, 2022, NARA informed Plaintiff that it would proceed with "provid[ing] the FBI access to the records in question, as requested by the incumbent President, beginning as early as Thursday, May 12, 2022" [ECF No. 48-1 p. 9]. The Government’s filing states that the FBI did not obtain access to the Fifteen Boxes until approximately May 18, 2022 [ECF No. 48 p. 7].

On May 11, 2022, during the period of ongoing communications between Plaintiff and NARA, and before DOJ received the Fifteen Boxes, DOJ "obtained a grand jury subpoena, for which Plaintiff’s counsel accepted service" [ECF No. 48 pp. 7–8; see ECF No. 1 p. 5]. The subpoena was directed to the "Custodian of Records [for] [t]he Office of Donald J. Trump" and requested "[a]ny and all documents or writings in the custody or control of Donald J. Trump and/or the Office of Donald J. Trump bearing classification markings" [ECF No. 48-1 p. 11]. Plaintiff contacted DOJ on June 2, 2022, and requested that FBI agents visit his residence the following day to pick up responsive documents [ECF No. 1 p. 5; ECF No. 48 p. 8]. Upon the FBI’s arrival, Plaintiff’s team handed over documents and permitted the three FBI agents and an accompanying DOJ attorney to visit the storage room where the documents were held [ECF No. 1 pp. 5–6; ECF No. 48 p. 9].

The Government contends that, after further investigation, "the FBI uncovered multiple sources of evidence indicating that the response to the May 11 grand jury subpoena was incomplete," and that potentially classified documents remained at Plaintiff’s residence [ECF No. 48 p. 10]. Based on this evidence and an affidavit that remains partially under seal, on August 5, 2022, the Government applied to a United States Magistrate Judge for a search and seizure warrant of Plaintiff’s residence, citing Title 18, Sections 793, 1519, and 2701 of the United States Code. Finding probable cause for each offense, the Magistrate Judge authorized law enforcement to (1) search Plaintiff’s office, "all storage rooms, and all other rooms or areas within the premises used or available to be used by [Plaintiff] and his staff and in which boxes or documents could be stored," and (2) seize the following: "[a]ny physical documents with classification markings, along with any containers/boxes (including any other contents) in which such documents are located, as well as any other containers/boxes that are collectively stored or found together with the aforementioned documents and containers/boxes"; "[ i]nformation, including communications in any form, regarding the retrieval, storage, or transmission of national defense information or classified material"; "[a]ny government and/or Presidential records created" during Plaintiff’s presidency; or "[a]ny evidence of the knowing alteration, destruction, or concealment of any government and/or Presidential Records, or of any documents with classification markings." USA v. Sealed Search Warrant, No. 22-08332-MJ-BER-1, ECF No. 17 pp. 3–4 (S.D. Fla. Aug. 11, 2022).

On August 8, 2022, pursuant to the search warrant, the Government executed an unannounced search of Plaintiff’s residence. As reflected in the "Detailed Property Inventory" submitted by the Government in this action, agents seized approximately 11,000 documents and 1,800 other items from the office and storage room [ECF No. 39-1].3 The seized property is generally categorized on the inventory as twenty-seven boxes containing documents, with and without classification markings, along with photographs, other documents, and miscellaneous material [ECF No. 1 pp. 24–26].4

Shortly after the search of the residence, Plaintiff’s counsel spoke with the Government and requested the following: a copy of the affidavit in support of the warrant; the Government’s consent to the appointment of a special master "to protect the integrity of privileged documents"; a detailed list of what was taken from the residence and from where exactly; and an opportunity to inspect the seized property [ECF No. 1 pp. 8–9]. The Government denied those requests [ECF No. 1 p. 9].5

In the absence of any agreement between the parties, on August 22, 2022, Plaintiff filed the Motion for Judicial Oversight and Additional Relief, seeking (1) the appointment of a special master to oversee the review of seized materials regarding identification of personal property and privilege review; (2) the enjoinment of further review of the seized materials until a special master is appointed; (3) a more detailed receipt for property; and (4) the return of any items seized in excess of the search warrant [ECF No. 1 p. 21; ECF No. 28 p. 10].

Following receipt of the Motion, the Court ordered Plaintiff to elaborate on the basis for the Court’s jurisdiction and the relief sought [ECF No. 10]. Plaintiff did so via a Supplement to the Motion on August 26, 2022 [ECF No. 28]. Consistent with Rule 53(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Court issued a preliminary order indicating its intent to appoint a special master [ECF No. 29]. Shortly thereafter, the Government appeared in this action and filed the Notice of Receipt of Preliminary Order [ECF No. 31]. Plaintiff executed service that same day [ECF No. 32]. The Government then filed under seal the Notice by Investigative Team of Status Review (the "Investigative Team Report") [ECF No. 39], attaching the "Detailed Property Inventory" as ordered by the Court [ECF No. 39-1]. The Investigative Team Report, now fully unsealed, indicates that the Investigative Team has "reviewed the seized materials in furtherance of its ongoing investigation," and that "[t]he seized materials will continue to be used to further the government’s investigation . . . as it takes further investigative steps, such as through additional witness interviews and grand jury practice" [ECF No. 39 p. 2]. While acknowledging that investigators have "already examined every item seized (other than materials that remain subject to the filter protocols)," the Government clarifies that "‘review’ of the seized materials is not a single investigative step but an ongoing process in this active criminal investigation" [ECF No. 39 p. 2]. The Government also states in its Investigative Team Report that DOJ and ODNI are "facilitating a classification review of materials recovered pursuant to the search warrant, and ODNI is leading an intelligence community assessment of the potential risk to national security that would result from disclosure of the seized materials" [ECF No. 39 pp. 2–3]. Additionally, the Government filed under seal its Notice of Status of Privilege Review Team’s Filter Process and Production of Itemized List of Documents Within Privilege Review Team’s Custody (the "Privilege Review Team’s Report") [ECF No. 40 (sealed)]. The Privilege Review Team’s Report remains under seal in accordance with the parties’ joint request at the hearing. This Order refers to the content of that report in general terms.

On August 30, 2022, the Government filed the Response to Plaintiff’s Motion [ECF No. 48], and on August 31, 2022, Plaintiff filed the Reply [ECF No. 58]. The Court then held a hearing on the Motion. This Order follows.

DISCUSSION

I. Jurisdiction


As previewed, Plaintiff initiated this action with a hybrid motion that seeks independent review of the property seized from his residence on August 8, 2022, a temporary injunction on any further review by the Government in the meantime, and ultimately the return of the seized property under Rule 41(g) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.6 Though somewhat convoluted, this filing is procedurally permissible7 and creates an action in equity. See Richey v. Smith, 515 F.2d 1239, 1245 (5th Cir. 1975) ("[A] motion [for return of property] prior to [a] criminal proceeding[] . . . is more properly considered simply a suit in equity rather than one under the Rules of Criminal Procedure."); In re Sealed Search Warrant & Application for a Warrant by Tel. or Other Reliable Elec. Means, 11 F.4th 1235, 1245 n.6 (11th Cir. 2021) ("[Rule 41] is the proper way to come before the court to seek an injunction regarding the government’s use of a filter team to review seized documents."). In other words, to entertain Plaintiff’s requests, the Court first must decide to exercise its equitable jurisdiction, see United States v. Martinez, 241 F.3d 1329, 1330 (11th Cir. 2001), which "derives from the [Court’s] inherent authority" over its officers (including attorneys) and processes, see Hunsucker v. Phinney, 497 F.2d 29, 32 (5th Cir. 1974); Fayemi v. Hambrecht and Quist, Inc., 174 F.R.D. 319, 324 (S.D.N.Y. 1997).8 In general, Rule 41(g) proceedings are "rooted in equitable principles" and served by "flexibility in procedural approach." Smith v. Katzenbach, 351 F.2d 810, 817 (D.C. Cir. 1965).

Importantly, equitable jurisdiction is reserved for "exceptional" circumstances, see Hunsucker, 497 F.2d at 32, and must be "exercised with caution and restraint," Matter of Sixty-Seven Thousand Four Hundred Seventy Dollars ($67,470.00), 901 F.2d 1540, 1544 (11th Cir. 1990). Mindful of its limited power in this domain, the Court endeavors to fulfill its obligations under the law with due care.

***

Upon full consideration of the parties’ arguments and the exceptional circumstances presented, the Court deems the exercise of equitable jurisdiction over this action to be warranted. In making this determination, the Court relies in part on the factors identified in Richey v. Smith. 515 F.2d at 1245.9 In that case, the former Fifth Circuit counseled courts to consider, for equitable jurisdiction purposes, whether the government displayed a callous disregard for the movant’s constitutional rights, whether the movant has an individual interest in and need for the seized property, whether the movant would be irreparably injured by denial of the return of the seized property, and whether the movant otherwise has an adequate remedy at law. Id. (describing these factors as "some of the considerations" that should inform the decision of whether to exercise equitable jurisdiction); see also Mesa Valderrama v. United States, 417 F.3d 1189, 1197 (11th Cir. 2005) (characterizing the Richey factors as guiding considerations). Those factors, although mixed, ultimately counsel in favor of exercising jurisdiction.

With respect to the first factor, the Court agrees with the Government that, at least based on the record to date, there has not been a compelling showing of callous disregard for Plaintiff’s constitutional rights. This factor cuts against the exercise of equitable jurisdiction.

The second factor—whether the movant has an individual interest in and need for the seized property—weighs in favor of entertaining Plaintiff’s requests. According to the Privilege Review Team’s Report, the seized materials include medical documents, correspondence related to taxes, and accounting information [ECF No. 40-2; see also ECF No. 48 p. 18 (conceding that Plaintiff "may have a property interest in his personal effects")]. The Government also has acknowledged that it seized some "[p]ersonal effects without evidentiary value" and, by its own estimation, upwards of 500 pages of material potentially subject to attorney-client privilege [ECF No. 48 p. 16; ECF No. 40 p. 2]. Thus, based on the volume and nature of the seized material, the Court is satisfied that Plaintiff has an interest in and need for at least a portion of it, even if the underlying subsidiary detail as to each item cannot reasonably be determined at this time based on the information provided by the Government to date.10

The same reasoning contributes to the Court’s determination that the third factor—risk of irreparable injury—likewise supports the exercise of jurisdiction. In addition to being deprived of potentially significant personal documents, which alone creates a real harm, Plaintiff faces an unquantifiable potential harm by way of improper disclosure of sensitive information to the public.11 Further, Plaintiff is at risk of suffering injury from the Government’s retention and potential use of privileged materials in the course of a process that, thus far, has been closed off to Plaintiff and that has raised at least some concerns as to its efficacy, even if inadvertently so. See infra Discussion III. Finally, Plaintiff has claimed injury from the threat of future prosecution and the serious, often indelible stigma associated therewith. As the Richey court wrote, "a wrongful indictment is no laughing matter; it often works a grievous, irreparable injury to the person indicted. The stigma cannot be easily erased. In the public mind, the blot on a man’s escutcheon, resulting from such a public accusation of wrongdoing, is seldom wiped out by a subsequent judgment of not guilty. Frequently, the public remembers the accusation, and still suspects guilt, even after an acquittal." 515 F.2d at 1244 n.10; see also In the Matter of John Bennett, No. 12-61499-CIV-RSR, ECF No. 22 pp. 26–27 (S.D. Fla. July 23, 2013) (explaining that, although some courts have rejected Richey’s observation as to the harm posed by indictments, Richey remains binding on district courts in the Eleventh Circuit). As a function of Plaintiff’s former position as President of the United States, the stigma associated with the subject seizure is in a league of its own. A future indictment, based to any degree on property that ought to be returned, would result in reputational harm of a decidedly different order of magnitude.

As to the fourth Richey factor, Plaintiff has persuasively argued that there is no alternative adequate remedy at law. Without Rule 41(g), Plaintiff would have no legal means of seeking the return of his property for the time being and no knowledge of when other relief might become available. See United States v. Ryan, 402 U.S. 530, 533 (1971) (expressing concern that the denial to consider Rule 41(g) requests "would mean that the Government might indefinitely retain the property without any opportunity for the movant to assert . . . his right to possession"); Harbor Healthcare Sys., L.P. v. United States, 5 F.4th 593, 601 (5th Cir. 2021) (explaining that motions to suppress and motions for return of property serve different functions); United States v. Dean, 80 F.3d 1535, 1542 (11th Cir. 1996), opinion modified on reconsideration, 87 F.3d 1212 (11th Cir. 1996) (making clear that the principle behind the doctrine of equitable jurisdiction—"that the state should not be permitted to deny individuals their property without recourse simply because there is no jurisdiction at law"—applies even when the seizure was lawful).

In combination, these guideposts favor the careful exercise of equitable jurisdiction under the circumstances. This determination is reinforced by the broader landscape of relevant equitable considerations. See generally Di Giovanni v. Camden Fire Ins. Ass’n, 296 U.S. 64, 73 (1935) (explaining that courts’ discretion in the realm of equity "may properly be influenced by considerations of the public interests involved" and the consequences of any grant of relief); Smith, 351 F.2d at 817–18 (elaborating on the breadth and flexibility of equitable considerations); Richey, 515 F.2d at 1245 (noting that the four identified factors are "some of the considerations" that should inform courts’ determinations); Mesa Valderrama, 417 F.3d at 1197 (characterizing the Richey factors as guiding considerations). Hence, the Court takes into account the undeniably unprecedented nature of the search of a former President’s residence; Plaintiff’s inability to examine the seized materials in formulating his arguments to date; Plaintiff’s stated reliance on the customary cooperation between former and incumbent administrations regarding the ownership and exchange of documents; the power imbalance between the parties; the importance of maintaining institutional trust; and the interest in ensuring the integrity of an orderly process amidst swirling allegations of bias and media leaks. Measuring the Richey factors along with all of the other considerations pertinent to a holistic equitable analysis, the scales tip decidedly in favor of exercising jurisdiction.12

The Court pauses briefly to emphasize the limits of this determination. Plaintiff ultimately may not be entitled to return of much of the seized property or to prevail on his anticipated claims of privilege. That inquiry remains for another day. For now, the circumstances surrounding the seizure in this case and the associated need for adequate procedural safeguards are sufficiently compelling to at least get Plaintiff past the courthouse doors.

II. Standing

There is another threshold argument the Court must consider, and that is the Government’s assertion as to Plaintiff’s lack of standing [ECF No. 48 pp. 2, 14–16]. The Government posits that Plaintiff lacks standing to bring a Rule 41(g) action or even to seek a special master, because the seized property consists of "Presidential records" over which Plaintiff lacks a "possessory interest" [ECF No. 48 pp. 14–15]. The Government relies on the definition of "Presidential records" under the Presidential Records Act (the "PRA"), see 44 U.S.C. § 2201(2), and on the Eleventh Circuit’s decision in Howell, 425 F.3d at 974; see supra note 12.

Plaintiff opposes the Government’s standing argument as premature and fundamentally flawed [ECF No. 58 p. 2]. In Plaintiff’s view, what matters now is his authority to seek the appointment of a special master—not his underlying legal entitlement to possess the records or his definable "possessory interest" under Rule 41(g) [ECF No. 58 pp. 4–6]. Moreover, Plaintiff adds, even assuming the Court were inclined at this juncture to consider Plaintiff’s potential claim of unreasonableness under the Fourth Amendment, settled law permits him, as the owner of the premises searched, to object to the seizure as unreasonable [ECF No. 58 pp. 2, 4–6].

Having considered these crisscrossing arguments, the Court concludes that Plaintiff is not barred as a matter of standing from bringing this Rule 41(g) action or from invoking the Court’s authority to appoint a special master more generally. To have standing to bring a Rule 41(g) motion, a movant must allege "a colorable ownership, possessory or security interest in at least a portion of the [seized] property." United States v. Melquiades, 394 F. App’x 578, 584 (11th Cir. 2010) (quoting United States v. Rodriguez-Aguirre, 264 F.3d 1195, 1204 (10th Cir. 2001)). Once that preliminary showing is made, the standing requirement is satisfied, because "[the] owner or possessor of property that has been seized necessarily suffers an injury that can be redressed at least in part by the return of the seized property." United States v. $515,060.42 in U.S. Currency, 152 F.3d 491, 497 (6th Cir. 1998). Contrary to the Government’s reading of Howell, Plaintiff need not prove ownership of the property but rather need only allege facts that constitute a colorable showing of a right to possess at least some of the seized property. Melquiades, 394 F. App’x at 584. Although the Government argues that Plaintiff has no property interest in any of the presidential records seized from his residence, that position calls for an ultimate judgment on the merits as to those documents and their designations. Further, the Government concedes that the seized property includes "personal effects," 520 pages of potentially privileged material, and at least some material that is in fact privileged [ECF No. 48 pp. 15–16]. This is sufficient to satisfy the standing requirement for the Rule 41(g) request and the request for a special master.

See generally United States v. Stewart, No. 02-CR-395, 2002 WL 1300059 (S.D.N.Y. June 11, 2002) (implicitly accepting that a party has standing to seek review by a special master when at least some of the seized materials are privileged); United States v. Abbell, 914 F. Supp. 519 (S.D. Fla. 1995) (same).

III. The Need for Further Review

Having determined that the exercise of jurisdiction is appropriate and that Plaintiff has standing to bring the instant requests, the Court next considers the need for further review of the seized material, as relates to Rule 41(g) and matters of privilege.

Although some of the seized items (e.g., articles of clothing) appear to be readily identifiable as personal property, the parties’ submissions suggest the existence of genuine disputes as to (1) whether certain seized documents constitute personal or presidential records, and (2) whether certain seized personal effects have evidentiary value. Because those disputes are bound up with Plaintiff’s Rule 41(g) request and involve issues of fact, the Court "must receive evidence" from the parties thereon. See Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g) ("The court must receive evidence on any factual issue necessary to decide the motion."). That step calls for comprehensive review of the seized property.

Review is further warranted, as previewed, for determinations of privilege. The Government forcefully objects, even with respect to attorney-client privilege, pointing out that the Privilege Review Team already has screened the seized property and is prepared to turn over approximately 520 pages of potentially privileged material for court review pursuant to the previously approved ex parte filter protocol [ECF No. 48 p. 14]. In plain terms, the Government’s position is that another round of screening would be "unnecessary" [ECF No. 48 p. 22]. The Court takes a different view on this record.

To begin, the Government’s argument assumes that the Privilege Review Team’s initial screening for potentially privileged material was sufficient, yet there is evidence from which to call that premise into question here. See In re Sealed Search Warrant & Application for a Warrant by Tel. or Other Reliable Elec. Means, 11 F.4th at 1249–51; see also Abbell, 914 F. Supp. at 520 (appointing a special master even after the government’s taint attorney already had reviewed the seized material). As reflected in the Privilege Review Team’s Report, the Investigative Team already has been exposed to potentially privileged material. Without delving into specifics, the Privilege Review Team’s Report references at least two instances in which members of the Investigative Team were exposed to material that was then delivered to the Privilege Review Team and, following another review, designated as potentially privileged material [ECF No. 40 p. 6]. Those instances alone, even if entirely inadvertent, yield questions about the adequacy of the filter review process.13

The Government’s argument that another round of initial screening is unnecessary also disregards the value added by an outside reviewer in terms of, at a minimum, the appearance of fairness. Even if DOJ filter review teams often pass procedural muster, they are not always perceived to be as impartial as special masters. See In re Search Warrant for L. Offs. Executed on Mar. 19, 1992, 153 F.R.D. 55, 59 (S.D.N.Y. 1994) ("It is a great leap of faith to expect that members of the general public would believe any [wall between a filter review team and a prosecution team] would be impenetrable; this notwithstanding our own trust in the honor of an [Assistant United States Attorney]."). Concerns about the perception of fair process are heightened where, as here, the Privilege Review Team and the Investigation Team contain members from the same section within the same DOJ division, even if separated for direct-reporting purposes on this specific matter. "[P]rosecutors have a responsibility to not only see that justice is done, but to also ensure that justice appears to be done." See In re Search Warrant Issued June 13, 2019, 942 F.3d 159, 183 (4th Cir. 2019), as amended (Oct. 31, 2019). A commitment to the appearance of fairness is critical, now more than ever.14

Though the foregoing analysis focuses on attorney-client privilege, the Court is not convinced that similar concerns with respect to executive privilege should be disregarded in the manner suggested by the Government. The Government asserts that executive privilege has no role to play here because Plaintiff—a former head of the Executive Branch—is entirely foreclosed from successfully asserting executive privilege against the current Executive Branch [ECF No. 48 pp. 24–25]. In the Court’s estimation, this position arguably overstates the law. In Nixon v. Administrator of General Services, 433 U.S. 425 (1977), a case involving review of presidential communications by a government archivist, the Supreme Court expressly recognized that (1) former Presidents may assert claims of executive privilege, id. at 439; (2) "[t]he expectation of the confidentiality of executive communications . . . [is] subject to erosion over time after an administration leaves office," id. at 451; and (3) the incumbent President is "in the best position to assess the present and future needs of the Executive Branch" for purposes of executive privilege, id. at 449. The Supreme Court did not rule out the possibility of a former President overcoming an incumbent President on executive privilege matters. Further, just this year, the Supreme Court noted that, at least in connection with a congressional investigation, "[t]he questions whether and in what circumstances a former President may obtain a court order preventing disclosure of privileged records from his tenure in office, in the face of a determination by the incumbent President to waive the privilege, are unprecedented and raise serious and substantial concerns." Trump v. Thompson, 142 S. Ct. 680, 680 (2022); see also id. at 680 (Kavanaugh, J., respecting denial of application for stay) ("A former President must be able to successfully invoke the Presidential communications privilege for communications that occurred during his Presidency, even if the current President does not support the privilege claim. Concluding otherwise would eviscerate the executive privilege for Presidential communications.").15 Thus, even if any assertion of executive privilege by Plaintiff ultimately fails in this context, that possibility, even if likely, does not negate a former President’s ability to raise the privilege as an initial matter. Accordingly, because the Privilege Review Team did not screen for material potentially subject to executive privilege, further review is required for that additional purpose.16

IV. Appointment of a Special Master

An independent special master should conduct the additional review that is warranted here. Rule 53(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure empowers courts to appoint a special master to "address pretrial . . . matters that cannot be effectively and timely addressed by an available district judge or magistrate judge of the district." Fed. R. Civ. P. 53(a). Here, as noted, the Government’s inventory reflects a seizure of approximately 11,000 documents and 1,800 other items from Plaintiff’s residence [see ECF No. 39-1]. Considering the volume of seized materials and the parties’ expressed desire for swift resolution of this matter, a special master would be better suited than this Court to conduct the review. The appointment of a special master is not uncommon in the context of attorney-client privilege. See, e.g., In re Search Warrant dated November. 5, 2021, 2021 WL 5845146, at *2; Stewart, 2002 WL 1300059, at *10; Abbell, 914 F. Supp. at 520. Nor is the appointment of a special master unheard of in the context of potentially executive privileged material. In fact, the Government itself recently contemplated and requested the appointment of a special master to review for both attorney-client and executive privilege. See In the Matter of Search Warrants Executed on April 28, 2021, No. 21-00425-MC-JPO, ECF No. 1 (S.D.N.Y. May 4, 2021) ("[ u]nder certain exceptional circumstances, the appointment of a special master to review materials seized from an attorney may be appropriate. Those circumstances may exist where . . . the attorney represents the President of the United States such that any search may implicate not only the attorney-client privilege but the executive privilege."). Most importantly, courts recognize that special masters uniquely promote "the interests and appearance of fairness and justice." United States v. Gallego, No. CR-18-01537-001, 2018 WL 4257967, at *3 (D. Ariz. Sept. 6, 2018); see also In re Search Warrants Executed on April 28, 2021, No. 21-MC-425 (JPO), 2021 WL 2188150, at *4 (S.D.N.Y. May 28, 2021) ("The Court agrees that the appointment of a special master is warranted here to ensure the perception of fairness."). Special effort must be taken to further those ends here.

V. Temporary Injunctive Relief

As a final matter, the Court determines that a temporary injunction on the Government’s use of the seized materials for investigative purposes—but not ODNI’s national security assessment—is appropriate and equitable to uphold the value of the special master review.17 It is not entirely clear whether courts must perform an additional analysis under Rule 65 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in this context, seeing as how a temporary restraint on use naturally furthers and complements the appointment of a special master. See, e.g., Stewart, 2002 WL 1300059, at *10 (instructing the government not to review the seized documents pending further instruction). To appoint a special master to make privilege determinations while simultaneously allowing the Government, in the interim, to continue using potentially privileged material for investigative purposes would be to ignore the pressing concerns and hope for the best.18 Moreover, many courts that have explicitly issued injunctions relating to special master review have done so without discussing Rule 65. See USA v. Gallego et al, No. 18-01537-CR-RM-BGM-1, ECF Nos. 26, 36 (Aug. 9 & 10, 2018). In any event, the Government reasonably maintains (without objection from Plaintiff) that the Court must engage with Rule 65, and so for the sake of completeness and prudence, the Court proceeds accordingly.19

Rule 65 recognizes the power of courts to issue injunctive relief. Such relief is considered "extraordinary," and to obtain it, a movant must "clearly carr[y] the burden of persuasion" as to the following factors: (1) a substantial likelihood of success on the merits; (2) irreparable injury unless the injunction is issued; (3) the threatened injury to the movant outweighs whatever damage the injunction may cause to the opposing party; and (4) the injunction would not be adverse to the public interest. United States v. Jefferson Cnty., 720 F.2d 1511, 1519 (11th Cir. 1983) (quoting Canal Authority v. Callaway, 489 F.2d 567, 573 (5th Cir. 1974)). "When the government is the opposing party, as it is here, the third and fourth factors merge." Georgia v. President of the United States, No. 21-14269, 2022 WL 3703822, at *3 (11th Cir. Aug. 26, 2022).

As discussed above, see supra Discussion III, the Court is satisfied that Plaintiff has "a likelihood of success on the merits of [his] challenge to the [Privilege Review Team] and its [p]rotocol." In re Search Warrant Issued June 13, 2019, 942 F.3d at 171; see also In re Sealed Search Warrant & Application for a Warrant by Tel. or Other Reliable Elec. Means, 11 F.4th at 1248–49 (assessing "likelihood of success on the merits" in terms of the sufficiency of the filter team’s review). For the same reasons—chiefly, the risk that the Government’s filter review process will not adequately safeguard Plaintiff’s privileged and personal materials in terms of exposure to either the Investigative Team or the media—Plaintiff has sufficiently established irreparable injury.

With regard to the injury factor, the Government contends that the timing of the Motion—filed two weeks after the subject seizure occurred—"militates against a finding of irreparable harm" [ECF No. 48 p. 20 (quoting Wreal, LLC v. Amazon.com, Inc., 840 F.3d 1244, 1248 (11th Cir. 2016))]. The Court disagrees. As the Government acknowledges, denials of injunctive relief based on a party’s delay usually arise in the context of considerably longer periods of time than the fourteen-day span implicated here. Wreal, 840 F.3d at 1244, 1248. Nor has the Government offered any authority denying injunctive relief on the basis of a two-week span. On the contrary, courts have held that delays of two or three weeks are not sufficiently long to undercut a showing of irreparable harm. See, e.g., Tom Doherty Assocs. v. Saban Ent, Inc., 60 F.3d 27, 39–40 (2d Cir. 1995); Fisher-Price Inc. v. Well-Made Toy Mfg. Corp., 25 F.3d 119, 125 (2d Cir. 1994), abrogated on other grounds by Belair v. MGA Ent., Inc., 503 F. App’x 65 (2d Cir. 2021). The Government thus is left to suggest that two weeks, perhaps ordinarily acceptable, is too long here because requests for special masters to review privileged material are typically made on a more expedited basis [ECF No. 48 pp. 20–21]. On balance, the Court is not persuaded. It is undisputed that Plaintiff’s counsel attempted to resolve Plaintiff’s request for a special master and other relief informally with the Government almost immediately after the search, without judicial intervention [see ECF No. 1 pp. 8–9]. In view of Plaintiff’s timely attempt toward a negotiated resolution of this issue, along with Plaintiff’s inability to know the extent of what was seized, the Court is satisfied that Plaintiff did not "slumber[] on [his] rights." In re Search Warrant Issued June 13, 2019, 942 F.3d at 182. While Plaintiff perhaps did not act as promptly as he could have, the two-week delay does not now preclude Plaintiff from seeking or being entitled to injunctive relief.

Lastly, with respect to the merged third and fourth factors, Plaintiff has shown, all in all, that the public and private interests at stake support a temporary enjoinment on the use of the seized materials for investigative purposes, without impacting the Government’s ongoing national security review. As Plaintiff articulated at the hearing, the investigation and treatment of a former president is of unique interest to the general public, and the country is served best by an orderly process that promotes the interest and perception of fairness. See supra Discussion III–IV; see also In re Search Warrant Issued June 13, 2019, 942 F.3d at 182 ("[A]n award of injunctive relief in these circumstances supports the ‘strong public interest’ in the integrity of the judicial system." (quoting United States v. Hasting, 461 U.S. 499, 527 (1983) (Brennan, J., concurring in part and dissenting in part))). The Government’s principal objection is that an injunction pending resolution of the special master’s review would delay the associated criminal investigation and national security risk assessment [ECF No. 48 pp. 29–30]. With respect to the referenced national security concerns, the Court understands and does not impact that component. But with respect to the Government’s ongoing criminal investigation, the Court does not find that a temporary special master review under the present circumstances would cause undue delay.20 "[E]fficient criminal investigations are certainly desirable," In re Search Warrant Issued June 13, 2019, 942 F.3d at 181, but so too are countervailing considerations of fair process and public trust. "[T]he [G]overnment chose to proceed by securing a search warrant for [the former President’s home and office] and seeking and obtaining [a] magistrate judge’s approval of the [f]ilter [p]rotocol. The [G]overnment should have been fully aware that use of a filter team in these circumstances was ripe for substantial legal challenges, and should have anticipated that those challenges could delay its investigations." In re Search Warrant Issued June 13, 2019, 942 F.3d at 181. None of this should be read to minimize the importance of investigating criminal activity or to indicate anything about the merits of any future court proceeding.

For all of these reasons, upon full consideration of the Rule 65 factors, the Court determines that a temporary injunction on the Government’s use of the seized materials for criminal investigative purposes pending resolution of the special master’s review process is warranted. The Court is mindful that restraints on criminal prosecutions are disfavored21 but finds that these unprecedented circumstances call for a brief pause to allow for neutral, third-party review to ensure a just process with adequate safeguards.

CONCLUSION

Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED AND ADJUDGED as follows:

1. A special master shall be APPOINTED to review the seized property, manage assertions of privilege and make recommendations thereon, and evaluate claims for return of property. The exact details and mechanics of this review process will be decided expeditiously following receipt of the parties’ proposals as described below.

2. The Government is TEMPORARILY ENJOINED from further review and use of any of the materials seized from Plaintiff’s residence on August 8, 2022, for criminal investigative purposes pending resolution of the special master’s review process as determined by this Court. The Government may continue to review and use the materials seized for purposes of intelligence classification and national security assessments.

3. On or before September 9, 2022, the parties shall meaningfully confer and submit a joint filing that includes: a. a list of proposed special master candidates; and b. a detailed proposed order of appointment in accordance with Rule 53(b), outlining, inter alia, the special master’s duties and limitations consistent with this Order, ex parte communication abilities, schedule for review, and compensation.

4. Any points of substantive disagreement as to 3(a) or (b) should be identified in the forthcoming joint filing.

5. The Court RESERVES RULING on Plaintiff’s request for return of property pending further review.

6. This Order is subject to modification as appropriate.

DONE AND ORDERED in Chambers at Fort Pierce, Florida this 5th day of September 2022.

_________________________________

AILEEN M. CANNON
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

cc: counsel of record

_______________

Notes:

1 Neither party requested an evidentiary hearing on the Motion, and under the circumstances, the Court finds resolution of the Motion sufficient and prudent on the present record.
 
2 NARA is an independent federal agency within the Executive Branch that is responsible for the preservation and documentation of government and historical records.
 
3 These figures are drawn collectively from the Government’s Detailed Property Inventory [ECF No. 39-1].
 
4 Based on the Detailed Property Inventory, of the approximately 11,000 documents seized, roughly 100 contain classification markings [ECF No. 39-1 pp. 2–8]. 
 
5 The exact date of that conversation is unclear, but all agree that the conversation took place soon after the search. Plaintiff references August 11, 2022, in the Motion, three days after the search (and eleven days prior to the filing of the Motion). The Government does not offer a different view in its Response or otherwise challenge the substance of the rejected requests. Counsel for the Government stated during the hearing that Plaintiff’s request for a special master was rejected on August 9, 2022, the morning after the search.
 
6 Prior to 2002, what is now Rule 41(g) was codified as Rule 41(e). "[E]arlier cases interpreting Rule 41(e) also apply to the new Rule 41(g)." United States v. Garza, 486 F. App’x 782, 784 n.3 (11th Cir. 2012); see De Almeida v. United States, 459 F.3d 377, 380 n.2 (2d Cir. 2006).  
 
7 Rule 41(g) allows movants, prior to the return of an indictment, to initiate standalone actions "in the district where [their] property was seized." See Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g); United States v. Wilson, 540 F.2d 1100, 1104 (D.C. Cir. 1976) ("Property which is seized . . . either by search warrant or subpoena may be ultimately disposed of by the court in that proceeding or in a subsequent civil action."); In the Matter of John Bennett, No. 12-61499-CIV-RSR, ECF No. 1 (S.D. Fla. July 31, 2012) (initiating an action with a "petition to return property"); see also In re Grand Jury Investigation of Hugle, 754 F.2d 863, 865 (9th Cir. 1985) ("[A] court is not required to defer relief [relating to privileged material] until after issuance of the indictment.").  
 
8 To the extent the Motion seeks relief totally distinct from the return of property itself, the Motion invokes the Court’s inherent supervisory authority directly. See generally Gravel v. United States, 408 U.S. 606, 628 (1972); In the Matter of Search Warrants Executed on April 28, 2021, No. 21-00425-MC-JPO, ECF No. 1 (S.D.N.Y. May 4, 2021) (the government initiating a new action by requesting that the Court, pursuant to its supervisory authority, appoint a special master to conduct filter review of materials potentially subject to attorney-client privilege and/or executive privilege).
 
9 In Bonner v. City of Prichard, 661 F.2d 1206, 1209–11 (11th Cir. 1981) (en banc), the Eleventh Circuit adopted as binding precedent all decisions of the former Fifth Circuit handed down prior to October 1, 1981.
 
10 To the extent the Government challenges Plaintiff’s standing to bring this action, the Court addresses that argument below. See infra Discussion II.
 
11 When asked about the dissemination to the media of information relative to the contents of the seized records, Government’s counsel stated that he had no knowledge of any leaks stemming from his team but candidly acknowledged the unfortunate existence of leaks to the press. 
 
12 At the hearing, the Government argued that the equitable concept of "unclean hands" bars Plaintiff from moving under Rule 41(g), citing United States v. Howell, 425 F.3d 971, 974 (11th Cir. 2005) ("[I]n order for a district court to grant a Rule 41(g) motion, the owner of the property must have clean hands."). Howell involved a defendant who pled guilty to conspiring to distribute cocaine and then sought the return of $140,000 in government-issued funds that were seized from him following a drug sale to a confidential source. Id. at 972–73. That case is not factually analogous to the circumstances presented and does not provide a basis to decline to exercise equitable jurisdiction here. Plaintiff has not pled guilty to any crimes; the Government has not clearly explained how Plaintiff’s hands are unclean with respect to the personal materials seized; and in any event, this is not a situation in which there is no room to doubt the immediately apparent incriminating nature of the seized material, as in the case of the sale of cocaine. 
 
13 In explaining these incidents at the hearing, counsel from the Privilege Review Team characterized them as examples of the filter process working. The Court is not so sure. These instances certainly are demonstrative of integrity on the part of the Investigative Team members who returned the potentially privileged material. But they also indicate that, on more than one occasion, the Privilege Review Team’s initial screening failed to identify potentially privileged material. The Government’s other explanation—that these instances were the result of adopting an overinclusive view of potentially privileged material out of an abundance of caution—does not satisfy the Court either. Even accepting the Government’s untested premise, the use of a broad standard for potentially privileged material does not explain how qualifying material ended up in the hands of the Investigative Team. Perhaps most concerning, the Filter Review Team’s Report does not indicate that any steps were taken after these instances of exposure to wall off the two tainted members of the Investigation Team [see ECF No. 40]. In sum, without drawing inferences, there is a basis on this record to question how materials passed through the screening process, further underscoring the importance of procedural safeguards and an additional layer of review. See, e.g., In re Grand Jury Subpoenas, 454 F.3d 511, 523 (6th Cir. 2006) ("In United States v. Noriega, 764 F. Supp. 1480 (S.D. Fla. 1991), for instance, the government’s taint team missed a document obviously protected by attorney-client privilege, by turning over tapes of attorney-client conversations to members of the investigating team. This Noriega incident points to an obvious flaw in the taint team procedure: the government’s fox is left in charge of the appellants’ henhouse, and may err by neglect or malice, as well as by honest differences of opinion.").
 
14 The Government implies that additional independent review for attorney-client privilege, such as by a special master, is appropriate only when a search of a law firm occurred [ECF No. 48 pp. 30–32]. Whatever the extent of this argument, it fails decisively here. True, special masters ordinarily arise in the more traditional setting of law firms and attorneys’ offices. But the Court does not see why these concerns would not apply, at least to a considerable degree, to the office and home of a former president. Moreover, at least one other court has authorized additional independent review for attorney-client privilege outside of the law firm context, in politicized circumstances.
See In re Search Warrant dated November 5, 2021, No. 21-Misc-813, 2021 WL 5845146, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 8, 2021) (appointing a special master to conduct review of materials seized from the homes of employees of Project Veritas for potentially attorney-client privileged materials).
 
15 On the current record, having been denied an opportunity to inspect the seized documents, Plaintiff has not formally asserted executive privilege as to any specific materials, nor has the incumbent President upheld or withdrawn such an assertion.
 
16 The Court recognizes that, under the PRA, "[t]he United States District Court for the District of Columbia shall have jurisdiction over any action initiated by the former President asserting that a determination made by the Archivist" to permit public dissemination of presidential records "violates the former President’s [constitutional] rights or privileges." 
44 U.S.C. § 2204. 
 
17 Although the Motion asks the Court to enjoin the Government’s review of the seized materials pending the appointment of a special master, it is clear that this request is meant to cover the Government’s temporary use of the seized materials and extend into the special master’s review process as appropriate. Any uncertainty on this point was clarified by Plaintiff’s presentation at the hearing. See United States v. Potes Ramirez, 260 F.3d 1310, 1315 (11th Cir. 2001) ("In the context of Rule 41[(g)] motions, several circuit courts have remarked on a district court’s authority to fashion an equitable remedy[] when appropriate . . . .").

Judge Cannon went to lengths to allow Mr. Trump’s legal team to clarify its argument after an initial filing that was too vague. During a hearing in the Trump case last week, she also seemed to help one of Mr. Trump’s lawyers remember that his client’s request for a special master included not only to review documents under attorney-client privilege but also to assess any that could be covered under executive privilege.

-- Trump Ruling Lifts Profile of Judge and Raises Legal Eyebrows: Judge Aileen M. Cannon has issued the first highly scrutinized ruling of her short judicial career, involving the person who put her on the bench: former President Donald J. Trump, by Patricia Mazzei, Maggie Haberman and Alan Feuer

 
18 Even without a temporary injunction as described herein, the Court would exercise its discretion to appoint a special master despite the considerably diminished utility of such an appointment.  
 
19 Because this part of the Order relies on much of the same reasoning articulated above, the Court uses internal cross-references where appropriate to minimize repetition.
 
20 The Government represents that it completed a preliminary review of the seized property in approximately three weeks [ECF Nos. 39, 40].
 
21 See Younger v. Harris, 401 U.S. 37, 43–44 (1971) ("[C]ourts of equity should not . . . act to restrain a criminal prosecution[] when the moving party has an adequate remedy at law and will not suffer irreparable injury if denied equitable relief."); Stefanelli v. Minard, 342 U.S. 117, 120 (1951) (explaining that "[t]he maxim that equity will not enjoin a criminal prosecution" applies with greatest force in the context of the federal government interfering with state prosecutions).
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Re: Trump lashes out at Gov. Doug Ducey following certificat

Postby admin » Tue Sep 06, 2022 10:45 pm

‘Deeply Problematic’: Experts Question Judge’s Intervention in Trump Inquiry: A ruling by a judge appointed by former President Donald J. Trump surprised specialists and could slow the documents investigation.
by Charlie Savage
New York Times
Published Sept. 5, 2022
Updated Sept. 6, 2022, 12:49 p.m. ET

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WASHINGTON — A federal judge’s extraordinary decision on Monday to interject in the criminal investigation into former President Donald J. Trump’s hoarding of sensitive government documents at his Florida residence showed unusual solicitude to him, legal specialists said.

This was “an unprecedented intervention by a federal district judge into the middle of an ongoing federal criminal and national security investigation,” said Stephen I. Vladeck, a law professor at University of Texas.

Siding with Mr. Trump, the judge, Aileen M. Cannon, ordered the appointment of an independent arbiter to review the more than 11,000 government records the F.B.I. seized in its search of Mar-a-Lago last month. She granted the arbiter, known as a special master, broad powers that extended beyond filtering materials that were potentially subject to attorney-client privilege to also include executive privilege.

Judge Cannon, a Trump appointee who sits on the Federal District Court for the Southern District of Florida, also blocked federal prosecutors from further examining the seized materials for the investigation until the special master had completed a review.

In reaching that result, Judge Cannon took several steps that specialists said were vulnerable to being overturned if the government files an appeal, as most agreed was likely. Any appeal would be heard by the Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta, where Mr. Trump appointed six of its 11 active judges.

Paul Rosenzweig, a former homeland security official in the George W. Bush administration and prosecutor in the independent counsel investigation of Bill Clinton, said it was egregious to block the Justice Department from steps like asking witnesses about government files, many marked as classified, that agents had already reviewed.

“This would seem to me to be a genuinely unprecedented decision by a judge,” Mr. Rosenzweig said. “Enjoining the ongoing criminal investigation is simply untenable.”


Born in Colombia in 1981, Judge Cannon graduated from Duke University in 2003 and the University of Michigan Law School in 2007. After clerking for a Republican-appointed appeals court judge in Iowa, she worked as an associate for a corporate law firm for three years before becoming an assistant federal prosecutor in Florida.

In her Senate questionnaire, she described herself as having been a member of the conservative Federalist Society since 2005.
Mr. Trump nominated her in May 2020, and the Senate confirmed her on Nov. 12, nine days after he lost re-election.

After Judge Cannon was assigned to Mr. Trump’s special master lawsuit, she made the unusual move of publicly declaring that she was inclined to instate one even before hearing arguments from the Justice Department. But she could have done so in a far more modest fashion.

“Judge Cannon had a reasonable path she could have taken — to appoint a special master to review documents for attorney-client privilege and allow the criminal investigation to continue otherwise,” said Ryan Goodman, a New York University law professor. “Instead, she chose a radical path.”

A specialist in separation of powers, Peter M. Shane, who is a legal scholar in residence at N.Y.U., said there was no basis for Judge Cannon to expand a special master’s authority to screen materials that were also potentially subject to executive privilege. That tool is normally thought of as protecting internal executive branch deliberations from disclosure to outsiders like Congress.

“The opinion seems oblivious to the nature of executive privilege,” he said.

The Justice Department is itself part of the executive branch, and a court has never held that a former president can invoke the privilege to keep records from his time in office away from the executive branch itself.

The department had argued that even if a special master were appointed, there would be no legal basis for that person to examine issues of executive privilege. It cited a 1977 Supreme Court case involving the papers of former President Richard M. Nixon, who had tried to use executive privilege to shield them even though the sitting president disagreed.

But Judge Cannon wrote that she was not convinced and believed the Justice Department’s stance “arguably overstates the law.” In that case, she said, the Supreme Court also stated that former presidents retained some residual power to invoke executive privilege.


The Supreme Court also said the incumbent officeholder is in the best position to assess such issues. But Judge Cannon wrote that the justices had not “ruled out the possibility” that a former president could ever prevail over the current one.

“Even if any assertion of executive privilege by plaintiff ultimately fails in this context,” she wrote, “that possibility, even if likely, does not negate a former president’s ability to raise the privilege as an initial matter.”

She did not address a 1974 Supreme Court case that upheld the Watergate prosecutor’s demand for White House tapes as part of a criminal investigation despite the attempt by Mr. Nixon, then the sitting president, to block it by asserting executive privilege.

“Even if there is some hypothetical situation in which a former president could shield his or her communications from the current executive branch,” Mr. Shane said, “they would not be able to do so in the context of a criminal investigation — and certainly not after the material has been seized pursuant to a lawful search warrant.”


Judge Cannon allowed a separate review of the documents, by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, to continue. It is assessing the risk to national security that the insecure holding of sensitive documents at Mar-a-Lago may have caused.

David Alan Sklansky, a Stanford University law professor, said he was glad that work had been allowed to continue given its importance. But he said there was an inherent contradiction in allowing the executive branch to use the files for that purpose while blocking it from using them for an active criminal investigation.

“There is this odd situation where one part of the executive branch can use the materials and another not,” he said.

In reasoning that she had a basis to install a special master, Judge Cannon relied heavily on a 1975 appeals court ruling. It held that courts had jurisdiction to decide whether to order the I.R.S. to return a businessman’s records that he claimed had been taken unlawfully
, and laid out a multipronged test for such situations.

One part of the test is whether the government had displayed a “callous disregard” for the constitutional rights of the person subjected to the search. On that issue, she sided with the Justice Department, which had obtained a warrant from a magistrate judge.

But she said the other parts of the test favored Mr. Trump. They included whether he had an individual interest in and need for the seized property, would be “irreparably harmed” by a denial of that request and lacked any other remedy.

While Mr. Trump does not own the government documents he repeatedly failed to return, the warrant permitted the F.B.I. to take anything else of his that he had left in the same containers as evidence of how he stored sensitive information.

Judge Cannon noted that a department report said this had included “medical documents, correspondence related to taxes and accounting information.”

“In addition to being deprived of potentially significant personal documents, which alone creates a real harm,” she wrote, Mr. Trump faced “an unquantifiable potential harm by way of improper disclosure of sensitive information to the public.” A footnote insinuated that the Justice Department might leak those files to reporters.

In weighing such factors,
she emphasized Mr. Trump’s status as a former president.

“As a function of plaintiff’s former position as president of the United States, the stigma associated with the subject seizure is in a league of its own,” she wrote. “A future indictment, based to any degree on property that ought to be returned, would result in reputational harm of a decidedly different order of magnitude.”


Ronald S. Sullivan Jr., a Harvard Law School professor, said anyone targeted by a search warrant fears reputational harm, but that does not mean they can get special masters appointed. He called Judge Cannon’s reasoning “thin at best” and giving “undue weight” to the fact that Mr. Trump is a former president.

“I find that deeply problematic,” he said, emphasizing that the criminal justice system was supposed to treat everyone equally. “This court is giving special considerations to the former president that ordinary, everyday citizens do not receive.”

Samuel W. Buell, a Duke University law professor, agreed.

“To any lawyer with serious federal criminal court experience who is being honest, this ruling is laughably bad, and the written justification is even flimsier,” he wrote in an email. “Donald Trump is getting something no one else ever gets in federal court, he’s getting it for no good reason, and it will not in the slightest reduce the ongoing howls that he is being persecuted, when he is being privileged.”
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