Intelligence Officials Will Assess Security Risks From Mar-a-Lago Documents
By: Luke Broadwater (The New York Times)
Merrick Garland's investigation has progressed to the intimidation phase. No one should be surprised that the investigation (to be generous) is following the same playbook used by Soviets, Communists, and totalitarian governments. The intelligence apparatchik threatens their target with an assessment of grave risks to security and crimes against the state as a form of intimidation. And the target is supposed to publicly confess and show contrition to obtain an assessment of lesser crimes.
And we're supposed to believe these autocrats are protecting democracy?
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
WASHINGTON — U.S. intelligence officials will conduct a review to assess the possible risks to national security from former President Donald J. Trump's handling of classified documents after the F.B.I. retrieved boxes containing sensitive material from Mar-a-Lago, according to a letter to lawmakers.
In the letter, Avril D. Haines, the director of national intelligence, informed the top lawmakers on the House Intelligence and Oversight Committees that her office would lead an intelligence community assessment of the "potential risk to national security that would result from the disclosure" of documents Mr. Trump took with him to his private club and residence in Palm Beach, Fla.
In the letter, which was obtained by The New York Times, Ms. Haines said her office would work with the Justice Department to ensure that the assessment did not interfere with the department's criminal investigation concerning the documents. The review will determine what intelligence sources or systems could be identified from the documents and be compromised if they fell into the wrong hands.
Ms. Haines's letter, dated Friday, was reported earlier by Politico. It came after the leaders of the Intelligence and Oversight Committees asked her on Aug. 13 to conduct an "immediate review and damage assessment" in the wake of the F.B.I.'s search of Mar-a-Lago, during which federal agents recovered 11 sets of classified documents.
The Senate Intelligence Committee also asked for a damage assessment, according to the panel's chairman, Senator Mark Warner, Democrat of Virginia, who said the request had been bipartisan.
On Friday, the Justice Department released a redacted version of the affidavit used to obtain the search warrant for Mar-a-Lago. That document included the revelation that Mr. Trump had retained highly classified material after leaving office, including documents related to the use of "clandestine human sources" in intelligence gathering.
Representatives Adam B. Schiff, Democrat of California and the chairman of the Intelligence Committee, and Carolyn B. Maloney, Democrat of New York and the chairwoman of the Oversight Committee, issued an approving statement in response to Ms. Haines's letter.
"The D.O.J. affidavit, partially unsealed yesterday, affirms our grave concern that among the documents stored at Mar-a-Lago were those that could endanger human sources," the lawmakers said in their statement.
Using the abbreviation for the intelligence community, they added, "It is critical that the I.C. move swiftly to assess and, if necessary, to mitigate the damage done — a process that should proceed in parallel with D.O.J.'s criminal investigation."
Before the F.B.I.'s search of Mar-a-Lago on Aug. 8, the National Archives and the Justice Department tried at length to retrieve sensitive documents that Mr. Trump had kept after leaving the White House.
In January, the archives collected 15 boxes from Mar-a-Lago. The F.B.I. later reviewed their contents and found a total of 184 documents with classification markings, including 25 labeled "top secret," according to the affidavit released on Friday.
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KGB? GRU? MSS? PLA? VAJA? No, it's the DOJ, FBI, NSA, and CIA.
Not to worry. Our democracy is safe and secure against grave risks to the state.
That’s silly.
No, it’s worse. It’s irresponsibly and hysterically hyperbolic.
It’s not following the same playbook. At all. Totalitarian governments don’t do investigations, negotiate with the target of their investigation, fill out affidavits, obtain warrants from judges based upon probable cause, involve multiple people and agencies - even across opposing political parties - submit themselves to scrutiny by a free press or review from democratically elected officials, hold hearings and fair trials with a jury of peers if necessary, treat subjects as innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, or employ any of the other elements of due process now unfolding.
In a totalitarian regime, Trump would not be able to ask to have any portion of an affidavit released, even if one existed. He would not be able to even ask for a special master to review evidence seized.
No, totalitarian governments don’t bother with any of that. They would have just walked into Mar-a-lago, shot everyone in the place, and taken what they wanted. Period. End of “investigation.” End of story.
"....hold hearings and fair trials with a jury of peers if necessary, treat subjects as innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, or employ any of the other elements of due process now unfolding"
Oh, is that what they're doing?? This whole mess has turned into a pathetic joke.
Yes, it is. If it weren’t, Trump would be dead or in prison already. If you want to express a legitimate criticism of what is happening, then go for it. But all the claims of totalitarianism or banana republic are hysterical partisan bullshit, as I have just demonstrated above @2, with actual examples of the differences.