Trump under investigation for potential violations of Espionage Act

[heybruce]

43 minutes ago, Thingamabob said:

So how do you think Biden regards the UK?

As a reliable ally and a force for democracy and stability in the world. 

 

Why?  How do you think Biden regards the UK?

[thaibeachlovers]

2 hours ago, LosLobo said:

Recently forensics gained the ability to date-stamp fingerprints. So the ones after Trump became FPOTUS will be interesting. When he was president I think he may have had the ability to share them with anyone of his choosing.

Link?

[wombat]

Well golly gosh.. here we are how many days later and Trump hasn't been arrested for espionage...

I mean the DOJ knew what documents they were looking for...didn't they?

These guys really don't want the Donald to run in the next president elections do they?

[wombat]

7 minutes ago, heybruce said:

  How do you think Biden regards the UK?

A potential Lend Lease customer?.

[Purdey]

Not sure how to deny he removed documents when there is a photo. As Trump was not known to read anything, it cannot be his library.

[Eric Loh]

4 minutes ago, wombat said:

Well golly gosh.. here we are how many days later and Trump hasn't been arrested for espionage...

I mean the DOJ knew what documents they were looking for...didn't they?

These guys really don't want the Donald to run in the next president elections do they?

Patience grasshopper. DOJ has all the evidences and not looking good for the orange man. Republican Party would rather not see him run but his base has the last word. 

[ThailandRyan]

18 minutes ago, wombat said:

Well golly gosh.. here we are how many days later and Trump hasn't been arrested for espionage...

I mean the DOJ knew what documents they were looking for...didn't they?

These guys really don't want the Donald to run in the next president elections do they?

As always another one who believes that once the smoking gun has been found that that is the end of the investigation....try again.......case or cases are still proceeding forward with sorting through other items.  Do you believe it will just be trump who faces charges....if you do then you are fooling yourself.  The optics do not look favorable for anyone involved including the attorney who lied in the document saying all items had been returned...think disbarment for him....

[Bkk Brian]

21 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Link?

How many?

 

[ThailandRyan]

16 minutes ago, Purdey said:

Not sure how to deny he removed documents when there is a photo. As Trump was not known to read anything, it cannot be his library.

It must be his collection of McDonalds menus from all over the world....

[heybruce]

19 minutes ago, wombat said:

Well golly gosh.. here we are how many days later and Trump hasn't been arrested for espionage...

I mean the DOJ knew what documents they were looking for...didn't they?

These guys really don't want the Donald to run in the next president elections do they?

Republicans have endless patience when it comes to investigating Democrats, as Benghazi and White Water showed.  However investigations of Republicans they want to be able to time with an egg timer.

 

I mean Trump knew he had the government documents and knew the government knew.  Why didn't he return all of them?  Why did he lie about still holding some?

 

I think from the position of winning the next Presidential election the Democrats would like for Trump to run again. 

[placeholder]

20 minutes ago, wombat said:

Well golly gosh.. here we are how many days later and Trump hasn't been arrested for espionage...

I mean the DOJ knew what documents they were looking for...didn't they?

These guys really don't want the Donald to run in the next president elections do they?

First of all. as has been repeatedly pointed out, just storing the documents in the way the Trump did is a crime. And if an ordinary citizen had done it, they would be facing serious charges. 

 

Espionage Isn’t the Strongest Case Against Trump. It’s Simpler Than That.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/08/14/trump-classified-documents-doj-opinion-00051584

 

Secondly, you seem to have a strange idea of how investigations work. There's a lot of evidence to deal with.

 

FBI Search of Mar-a-Lago Achieved DOJ Top Priority: Get the Documents

Investigators are now pursuing the next steps of the department’s criminal investigation into the handling of national security material and presidential records, a process that may take many months to play out, and will be shaped by several factors.

They include what specifically investigators find in the seized documents; why they ended up at Mar-a-Lago; who accessed them at the Florida resort, as well as the actions of Mr. Trump and his lawyers as the two sides negotiated for months in the spring for the return of the records, according to people familiar with the inquiry.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/fbi-search-of-mar-a-lago-achieved-doj-top-priority-get-the-documents/ar-AA10ERIO?li=BBnb7Kz

[Thingamabob]

1 hour ago, Berkshire said:

I've noticed these non-Americans supporting Trump are even more white nationalists than Americans who support Trump.  They think Trump is another Viktor Orban and they badly want the USA to become like Hungary.  Luckily we're still a democracy....but barely. 

Wrong. They think Biden is an IRA supporter.

[placeholder]

Just now, Thingamabob said:

Wrong. They think Biden is an IRA supporter.

You mean that he's a supporter of Sinn Fein, the party that won the more seats in Northern Ireland's Assembly than any other party?

Or are you still beleaguered by memories of The Troubles which are now a thing of the past thanks in large part to the efforts of Bill Clinton?

[Slip]

3 hours ago, Thingamabob said:

Speaking as a Brit we all know Biden hates us, his closest allies, and betrayed us over the manner of the USA's withdrawal from Afganisthan. At least Trump told us of his plan to withdraw. Nothing at all from Biden. On that basis alone give me Trump anytime.

Speaking as a Brit.... You're talking a load of old cobblers my son.

[candide]

21 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

It must be his collection of McDonalds menus from all over the world....

Or copies of videos made by Putin! Eh eh!

[billd766]

3 hours ago, Thingamabob said:

Speaking as a Brit we all know Biden hates us, his closest allies, and betrayed us over the manner of the USA's withdrawal from Afganisthan. At least Trump told us of his plan to withdraw. Nothing at all from Biden. On that basis alone give me Trump anytime.

Thingamabob,

 

You only speak for yourself and NOT for the whole of the UK.

 

Also speaking as a Brit but only for myself I don't think President Biden (to give him his proper title) hates us Brits at all. He certainly did not betray us over the USA's withdrawal from Afghanistan at all.

 

He inherited yet another FUBAR from EX president Trump and had to run with it.

 

If you believe that Trump is the saviour of the world, the USA and especially of Trump himself then be my guest.

 

But please don't think that you speak for all of the people of the UK, because you do not. You speak only, of and about, yourself.

[Chomper Higgot]

35 minutes ago, Thingamabob said:

Wrong. They think Biden is an IRA supporter.

You need to get over the idea that the UK has some kind of special relationship with the UK.

 

The UK shall not do as it pleases in Ireland without pushback from the significant Irish lobby in the US.

 

Characterize this as ‘Biden supporting the IRA’ if doing so makes you feel better about the UK policies in Ireland being very much subject to approval from Washington, regardless of who is President.

 

The views of voting Irish Americans are far more important to US Presidents than what the UK thinks it can do in Ireland.

 

[ozimoron]

2 hours ago, proton said:

Biden, or is it the 46? has already achieved that by gifting millions of dollars worth of arms to the Taliban, having no southern border control and making the USA a world wide joke. ????

Stuff they really wanted to keep, they kept.

[ozimoron]

1 hour ago, wombat said:

Well golly gosh.. here we are how many days later and Trump hasn't been arrested for espionage...

I mean the DOJ knew what documents they were looking for...didn't they?

These guys really don't want the Donald to run in the next president elections do they?

2, all of which were on a weekend.

[NanLaew]

On 8/14/2022 at 6:49 AM, Phoenix Rising said:

On 8/14/2022 at 5:40 AM, mikeymike100 said:

What you say is fair enough. If that is in fact what happened? If the evidence is so damming then surely the DOJ can charge him? As yet as far as I know he hasn't been charged with anything.

Because they don't want to rush this case would be the answer. AG Garland will make absolutely 100% sure all tees are crossed and all ies are dotted before making whatever move he's gonna make, Surely you can understand that, right?

Correct. Since Trump is "two and o" on impeachments, they're making sure that the DOJ and FBI lawyers can breath longer in the swamp water than Trump's crocodiles lawyers.

[Walker88]

1 hour ago, wombat said:

Well golly gosh.. here we are how many days later and Trump hasn't been arrested for espionage...

I mean the DOJ knew what documents they were looking for...didn't they?

These guys really don't want the Donald to run in the next president elections do they?

I would say it is particularly bad news for 45 that he hasn't been charged yet.

 

The fact that the search team had with them the Chief of Counterintelligence is a really bad sign for him, because it suggests they are building a big case to include "Conspiracy to Commit Espionage", a capital offense carrying the death penalty.

 

Here's how they build it:

 

1) He had documents he had no right to have

2) He lied about returning everything in June

3) Lying shows criminal intent and obstruction of justice

4) The obvious reason for retaining docs and lying about it is that he planned to monetize the material; there is no other possible explanation

 

The Feds have someone inside MaL. It is quite possible that long ago they got a warrant to tap his commo, and if so, they could have evidence of his intent to monetize the material.

 

Such a case takes time to build, and DoJ will not only try to get the ringleader, but everyone else who might be involved. As has now become abundantly clear, AG Garland is meticulous and thorough.

 

Because ANYONE who help 45 pack and ship those classified docs to MaL is subject to criminal prosecution and imprisonment ("45 told me to do it" is not a defense), DoJ may well have other co-conspirators under investigation and some might be cooperating as part of a plea deal.

[Excel]

1 minute ago, Walker88 said:

some might be cooperating as part of a plea deal.

Perhaps his wife ?

[placeholder]

2 minutes ago, Walker88 said:

I would say it is particularly bad news for 45 that he hasn't been charged yet.

 

The fact that the search team had with them the Chief of Counterintelligence is a really bad sign for him, because it suggests they are building a big case to include "Conspiracy to Commit Espionage", a capital offense carrying the death penalty.

 

Here's how they build it:

 

1) He had documents he had no right to have

2) He lied about returning everything in June

3) Lying shows criminal intent and obstruction of justice

4) The obvious reason for retaining docs and lying about it is that he planned to monetize the material; there is no other possible explanation

 

The Feds have someone inside MaL. It is quite possible that long ago they got a warrant to tap his commo, and if so, they could have evidence of his intent to monetize the material.

 

Such a case takes time to build, and DoJ will not only try to get the ringleader, but everyone else who might be involved. As has now become abundantly clear, AG Garland is meticulous and thorough.

 

Because ANYONE who help 45 pack and ship those classified docs to MaL is subject to criminal prosecution and imprisonment ("45 told me to do it" is not a defense), DoJ may well have other co-conspirators under investigation and some might be cooperating as part of a plea deal.

Let's not get carried away. Try to remember that, on the emotional level,  we're dealing with an angry resentful child. I think it's far more likely that Trump held on to that stuff because he couldn't accept that he lost the election and it was his way of trolling the Biden administration.

[Thingamabob]

35 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

You need to get over the idea that the UK has some kind of special relationship with the UK.

 

The UK shall not do as it pleases in Ireland without pushback from the significant Irish lobby in the US.

 

Characterize this as ‘Biden supporting the IRA’ if doing so makes you feel better about the UK policies in Ireland being very much subject to approval from Washington, regardless of who is President.

 

The views of voting Irish Americans are far more important to US Presidents than what the UK thinks it can do in Ireland.

 

Yes indeed. You could have saved your breath, but thank you anyway. I repeat that many people in the UK believe that Biden is an IRA supporter, unlike Trump.

Edited August 15, 2022 by Thingamabob

[Berkshire]

3 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

If, as reported, the TS/SCI documents included documents relating to US Nuclear Weapons Systems then the possibility of US adversaries getting access to these documents has to be considered a reality.

 

This is a threat to US National Security and is something all Americans should be concerned about.

 

There was a time when the Republican Party stood for law and order and national security.  That's no longer the case.  The GOP now pledges allegiance to the orange man.  They stand for nothing else.  How very sad. 

[billd766]

2 hours ago, proton said:

Biden, or is it the 46? has already achieved that by gifting millions of dollars worth of arms to the Taliban, having no southern border control and making the USA a world wide joke. ????

Do you have any idea of the amounts of equipment accumulated

over 20 years?

 

Obviously not.

 

Have you any idea of the logistics of shipping equipment across half the world? Apart from the fact that most vehicles have to be properly cleaned an disinfected, how do you think that they would get out of Afghanistan in the first place?

 

Each item has a cost value. That means would it be cheaper to leave it behind or take it back. Really heavy items such as main battle tank would have to be put onto transporters and driven to the nearest port.

 

In this case it would most likely be Karachi in Pakistan some 1,400 km one way. They would have to travel about half the distance through Afghanistan via Kandahar and Quetta, being very careful not to stray across the border with Iran. Or directly to Quetta and Karachi some 1,500 km or via the Khyber Pass, Peshawar, Islamabad, Lahore and Hyderabad to Karachi some 1,850 km.

 

They would also need reams of paperwork, passes, passports, diplomatic permissions and paperwork up the ying yang and that is for only a one way one trip journey. They would be moving half an armies equipment across 2 not particularly friendly countries.

 

Just imagine the chaos if the Afghan of Pakistan decided to stop and search every vehicle and every person for drugs perhaps every 50 km.

[heybruce]

25 minutes ago, Excel said:

Perhaps his wife ?

Maybe sending him to prison will get her out of the ironclad pre-nup she had to sign.

[Excel]

Just now, heybruce said:

Maybe sending him to prison will get her out of the ironclad pre-nup she had to sign.

Did she ?

[NanLaew]

21 hours ago, placeholder said:

It doesn't matter how strong the evidence is. The Attorney General, especially this one, is going to dot the i's and cross the t's. All of them. Good lawyers are careful. Not impulsive. Come to think of it, that goes for good Presidents, too.  

This AG was Obama's last nominee to the SCOTUS. A nomination that the Republicans refused to ratify since Obama, despite still being POTUS at that time, was already on the way out due to term limits and a likely election loss. They gamed the system. Both parties game the system but the Republicans hands-down are the experts at it.

 

Hell hath no fury like a SCOTUS nominee scorned.

 

Apart from that, Garland was easily the most qualified and dignified judge to be nominated in living history. He's the living definition of equanimity. On the other hand, you just have to look at the shrieking drama queens that Trump (and earlier Republican presidents have) foisted on the nation to see that it wasn't a high bar in that regard.

[heybruce]

Just now, Excel said:

Did she ?

I'm certain of it.  If there is one thing Trump does know, it is how to get in and out of marriages with the minimum of cost and inconvenience.