Trump took more than 700 pages of classified documents

Washington The letter continued, saying the government needed to “make an assessment of the potential damage resulting from the apparent manner in which these materials were stored and transported”. The now-published exchange between the authority and Trump’s defense attorney occurred months before the FBI’s federal police searched the former president’s property. Two weeks ago, other documents were secured, some of which were classified as top secret.

The research sparked an uproar outside the United States. Trump said he has released the sets of documents confiscated from his presidency. Current presidents have far-reaching powers of declassification. But for the release of documents, there is a formal procedure that includes several very formal steps. Trump also claimed that there are standing interview instructions in place for all documents taken home.

On Monday, Trump filed a lawsuit against the government, asking an impartial examiner to check the most recent seized documents, and halting all investigations until then. Trump’s taking of the documents would be a criminal act. The 76-year-old describes the Justice Department’s actions against him as politically motivated, as he has been flirting for weeks with the idea of ​​running for president again in 2024.

Legal disputes are also currently underway over whether at least some of the documents on which the Mar-a-Lago quest was based can be published. A Florida judge ordered the Department of Justice to submit revision proposals this week. Several media outlets have requested that the documents be published. However, the Department of Justice argued that this may affect future investigations and witness cooperation.

It is highly unlikely that entire documents will become public. In the end, extensive redactions may result in them becoming often unreadable.