White House officials are private fretting about the contents of classified documents taken by former President Donald Trump to his Florida mansion. CNN reports that some of these documents can be seen only in “secure government facilities”. As more information tumbles out in light of the raid conducted on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home by FBI agents a little more than a week ago, the concern of incumbent administrators grows by the day. Intelligence community members are also fearful of what may lie ahead. Worried that the information at Trump’s disposal may put their sources and methods at risk, they remain in discussions with the Justice Department, congressional intelligence committees and The National Archives to find whether sensitive documents are missing.
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Despite the mounting concerns of White House officials, they remain tightlipped on the matter. Even President Joe Biden has chosen to keep away from the machinations of the Justice Department. According to White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, the President hadn’t received briefings on the ongoing criminal investigations against his predecessor- not even the treats it holds to national security. Instead, he has relied on the media to keep himself up to date.
When asked by CNN’s Don Lemon at a press briefing if he should remain in the loop, Klain toed the POTUS line:
“One reason why Joe Biden got elected President is he promised that he would stay out of meddling like his predecessor did in investigations being conducted by the Justice Department, that he would not politically interfere in the Justice Department enforcing our laws.”
The Justice Department retrieved 11 sets of files from Trump’s residence, including materials marked ‘Top secret/SCI”, one of the highest levels of confidentiality. Some of the retrieved files include those on French President Emmanuel Macron, causing further embarrassment to White House staff. The French Embassy in Washington did not reveal if they had discussions with White House officials on the matter.
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President Biden has strongly condemned Trump’s handling of sensitive information, going as far as suspending him from intelligence briefings, a courtesy extended to all former Presidents:
“What value is giving him an intelligence briefing? What impact does he have at all, other than the fact he might slip and say something?,” he remarked in an interview in February 2021.
Trump is mired in multiple legal entanglements and scandals, including a civil case filed against him by New York Attorney General Letitia James for allegedly misreporting property values owned by the Trump Organization.