This morning, I have two blackbirds competing for the spot in my kitchen fan.
Gilead
Donald Trump
Coup attempt
Fig. 1. Department of Justice photograph of seized materials, reportedly partially redacted, via the Washington Post, August 31, 2022,[1] public domain.
The latest Washington Post story[2] eviscerates any rationalization for Merrick Garland’s dithering over requesting a search warrant for Mar-a-Lago.[3] Garland knew or should have known that Donald Trump was retaining highly sensitive government secrets and was resisting returning documents.[4] In this paradigm, where mishandling of classified material is presumed to be a threat to national security, and the threat of highly classified material is even more so, it is of the utmost importance that those documents be recovered immediately. But Garland inexcusably dithered for weeks.[5]
So a huge question is about Garland’s apparent gross negligence as attorney general.
But even as Garland is bending over backwards, desperately avoiding prosecuting Trump,[6] Trump’s withholding of classified documents that have been subpoenaed[7] sure makes it seem like he is desperate to be prosecuted.[8]
Some of the former president’s closest aides have continued to work with [Donald] Trump even as they have seen FBI agents show up at their houses to question them and serve subpoenas.[9]
I have been profoundly reluctant to attribute any intelligence to Trump whatsoever. Even this, I would attribute to someone else. But at the risk of conspiracy theorizing, this is starting to look like a plan to me. It is like Trump’s team is expecting a prosecution and that this prosecution is part of their plan.
I don’t know if the Department of Justice perceives such a plan or if the Joe Biden administration has a strategy for dealing with it. But what we’re seeing on the surface is seriously flunking a smell test.
Areeba Shah, “Legal experts: Russia link to Trump documents means it’s a matter of ‘when, not if’ he is indicted,” Salon, October 11, 2022, https://www.salon.com/2022/10/11/legal-experts-link-to-documents-means-its-a-matter-of-when-not-if-he-is-indicted/
Devlin Barrett and Josh Dawsey, “Trump worker told FBI about moving Mar-a-Lago boxes on ex-president’s orders,” Washington Post, October 12, 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/10/12/maralago-witness-trump-boxes-moved/
- [1]Devlin Barrett, “Justice Dept. says Trump team may have hidden, moved classified papers,” Washington Post, August 31, 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/08/31/trump-documents-removed-storage-room/↩
- [2]Devlin Barrett and Josh Dawsey, “Trump worker told FBI about moving Mar-a-Lago boxes on ex-president’s orders,” Washington Post, October 12, 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/10/12/maralago-witness-trump-boxes-moved/↩
- [3]Sadie Gurman and Aruna Viswanatha, “Merrick Garland Weighed Search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago for Weeks,” Wall Street Journal, August 15, 2022, https://www.wsj.com/articles/merrick-garland-weighed-search-of-trumps-mar-a-lago-for-weeks-11660601292↩
- [4]Devlin Barrett and Josh Dawsey, “Trump worker told FBI about moving Mar-a-Lago boxes on ex-president’s orders,” Washington Post, October 12, 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/10/12/maralago-witness-trump-boxes-moved/↩
- [5]Sadie Gurman and Aruna Viswanatha, “Merrick Garland Weighed Search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago for Weeks,” Wall Street Journal, August 15, 2022, https://www.wsj.com/articles/merrick-garland-weighed-search-of-trumps-mar-a-lago-for-weeks-11660601292↩
- [6]David Benfell, “It is now even more urgently orange jumpsuit time,” Not Housebroken, October 12, 2022, https://disunitedstates.org/2022/10/10/if-vladimir-putin-doesnt-make-sense-he-doesnt-make-sense-and-he-cannot-last/↩
- [7]Kaitlan Collins, “Justice Department insists to Trump’s attorneys that he return all documents marked classified,” CNN, October 6, 2022, https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/06/politics/trump-white-house-documents-mar-a-lago-justice-department/index.html; Michael S. Schmidt, Maggie Haberman, and Katie Benner, “Justice Dept. Is Said to Believe Trump Has More Documents,” New York Times, October 6, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/06/us/politics/trump-white-house-documents-lawyers.html↩
- [8]Devlin Barrett and Josh Dawsey, “Trump worker told FBI about moving Mar-a-Lago boxes on ex-president’s orders,” Washington Post, October 12, 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/10/12/maralago-witness-trump-boxes-moved/↩
- [9]Devlin Barrett and Josh Dawsey, “Trump worker told FBI about moving Mar-a-Lago boxes on ex-president’s orders,” Washington Post, October 12, 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/10/12/maralago-witness-trump-boxes-moved/↩