Yes folks, this headline is correct.
The left is all dizzied up in a tizzy but spoiler alert: it’s a nothing burger.
So here’s what happened…
In something reminiscent of the FBI raiding Roger Stone’s house and arresting him in a bathrobe because he was “so dangerous”, the National Archives raided Mar-a-Lago claiming that President Trump had somehow improperly taken documents and records.
Complete nonsense.
Before I explain, first take a look at the absolute panic from the left on Twitter:
Trump violated Presidential Records Act routinely. Amazing one man can break so many laws “The National Archives said”in a statement that records turned over from the Trump White House “included paper records that had been torn up by former President Trump.”
— Harry Litman (@harrylitman) February 1, 2022
Scoop: National Archives last month had to retrieve boxes of Trump WH records from Mar-a-Lago that were improperly removed from the WH. The items included correspondence w Kim Jong Un. With @jdawsey1 @thamburger & @AshleyRParker > https://t.co/ZdGvEk66Zv
— Jacqueline Alemany (@JaxAlemany) February 7, 2022
Former President Trump had to return 15 boxes of documents that were improperly taken from the White House, the National Archives says. https://t.co/6FHQ1KJQ7H
— NBC News (@NBCNews) February 8, 2022
Former President Trump had to return 15 boxes of documents that were improperly taken from the White House, the National Archives says. https://t.co/6FHQ1KJQ7H
— NBC News (@NBCNews) February 8, 2022
And my personal favorite:
w/@nytmike, matching WaPo scoop on Trump improperly taking documents that the National Archives had to go hunting for, 15 boxes that were said to have been among those thrown together during Trump's hasty departure from the WH https://t.co/74VcUQpABx
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) February 8, 2022
Here’s what the Washington Post reported:
President Donald Trump improperly removed multiple boxes from the White House that were retrieved by the National Archives and Records Administration last month from his Mar-a-Lago residence because they contained documents and other items that should have been turned over to the agency, according to three people familiar with the visit.
The recovery of the boxes from Trump’s Florida resort raises new concerns about his adherence to the Presidential Records Act, which requires the preservation of memos, letters, notes, emails, faxes and other written communications related to a president’s official duties.
Trump advisers deny any nefarious intent and said the boxes contained mementos, gifts, letters from world leaders and other correspondence. The items included correspondence with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, which Trump once described as “love letters,” as well as a letter left for his successor by President Barack Obama, according to two people familiar with the contents.
Discussions between the Archives and the former president’s lawyers that began last year resulted in the transfer of the records in January, according to one person familiar with the conversations. Another person familiar with the materials said Trump advisers discussed what had to be returned in December. People familiar with the transfer, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to reveal internal details.
It turns out all they found in the boxes were gifts, mementos and letters to Trump from world leaders.
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This is totally normal.
Every recent presidential administration has had some Presidential Records Act violations, but the media has to sensationalize this story because it involves Trump.
Meanwhile, here is what NBC News reports:
Former President Donald Trump had to return 15 boxes of documents that were improperly taken from the White House, the National Archives said Monday.
“In mid-January 2022, NARA (National Archives and Records Administration) arranged for the transport from the Trump Mar-a-Lago property in Florida to the National Archives of 15 boxes that contained Presidential records, following discussions with President Trump’s representatives in 2021,” the National Archives said in a statement, confirming a report in The Washington Post.
Two sources told The Post that among the items Trump had to return were correspondence with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that Trump has described as “beautiful letters” and a handwritten letter that former President Barack Obama had left behind in the Oval Office for his successor.
NBC News has not independently confirmed the contents of the boxes. The National Archives said they were items that under the Presidential Records Act should have been turned over at the end of the Trump administration.
“The Presidential Records Act mandates that all Presidential records must be properly preserved by each Administration so that a complete set of Presidential records is transferred to the National Archives at the end of the Administration,” Archivist David S. Ferriero said in the statement, adding that the National Archives “pursues the return of records whenever we learn that records have been improperly removed or have not been appropriately transferred to official accounts.”
The records agency said it believes Trump still has more records that need to be turned over and that “Trump’s representatives have informed NARA that they are continuing to search for additional Presidential records that belong to the National Archives.”
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