Following the retrieval of records from former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, the National Archives and Records Administration has made a formal request for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to look into Trump’s handling of records during and after his time in office.
This inquiry could lead to Trump being charged with criminal acts for tampering on official documents. Experts however believe that this is unlikely.
Fifteen boxes of material from Trump’s time as president were recovered from his Mar-a-Lago property in Palm Beach, Flordia. That these boxes were in Trump’s possession rather than with the National Archives is a violation of the law.
Although the contents of the boxes are largely unknown, sources with knowledge of the retrieval have said that they include keepsakes from Trump’s presidential tenure, such as letters from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Sources also confirmed that it’s possible that the boxes contained classified materials.
Past presidents have sometimes committed minor violations of the Presidential Records Act, sometimes mistakingly, by bringing pieces and memorabilia from the White House to their postpresidential residences. Trump’s records after his departure are unusually large.
Trump’s handling of presidential documents, both inside and out of the White House, has attracted renewed attention after the House select committee investigating the January 6 Capitol attack started receiving documents from the National Archives that were relevant to their inquiry. The committee received several documents that were once in Trump’s possession. were ripped upTo be read, the tape had to be reattached.
This further confirms reporting from Politico in 2018The article explained how Trump staffers had to repair ripped documents after he ripped them up or disposed of them.
The January 6 commission isn’t the only House committee looking into Trump’s mishandling of White House documents. Carolyn Maloney (D. New York), is the chair of House Oversight Committee. has requested information from Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero in order to “examine the extent and impact” of Trump’s defiance of the Presidential Records Act.
New details revealing the extent to which Trump sought to dispose of official records have emerged from a number of sources — including from a new book by New York TimesMaggie Haberman, journalist, reports on that Trump clogged White House toilets by attempting to flush documents down the pipes.
There are also as-yet unfounded allegations that Trump ate papersInstead of having them turned over, All of these actions appear to be in violation the Presidential Records Act.
However penalties for violating the rule Experts say it is difficult to enforce the law, which could lead to large fines or even years imprisonment.
“The problem is that the Presidential Records Act, as written, does not have any real enforcement mechanism,” said James Grossman of the American Historical Association, noting that the law acts more like a “gentleman’s agreement” than anything else.
“You can’t prosecute for just tearing up papers,” added former House counsel Charles Tiefer. “You would have to show [Trump] being highly selective and have evidence that he wanted to behave unlawfully.”
