Take away from the Redacted Affidavit on raid on Trump

Revelations 2:5 “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

Important Takeaways:

  • FBI raid on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago: 5 things the redacted affidavit reveals
  • First, there is little effort spent addressing the significance of apparent exculpatory evidence and mitigating facts. While it includes a letter from Trump’s lawyers, it does not acknowledge potential advice of counsel defense or any authority to bring such a case against a former U.S. president, or even refute the issues raised by Trump’s lawyers in any meaningful way.
  • Further, the affidavit references the applicable law but withholds any mention of court decisions regarding a U.S. president’s unfettered ability to declassify documents, and it fails to inform the court that a former U.S. president may fall outside the criminal statute.
  • Second, it’s hard to find criminal intent anywhere in the unredacted affidavit. If it’s in there, it is redacted since no visible language alludes to any individual “willfully” retaining documents or otherwise violating the laws that the FBI alleges have been broken.
  • Third, we still do not know who the target – or targets – of this warrant are. The affidavit is filled with conclusory statements such as “there is probable cause,” but the unredacted language gives absolutely no reference to whom the probable cause applies.
  • Fourth, perhaps nowhere do the redacted portions have more work to do than the alleged evidence of obstruction.
  • Fifth, the unredacted portions still do not answer the question “why now?” Timing is a critical piece of any warrant.

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