After he left office, Trump ordered his chief of staff to leak classified information to the press

[Nevilledog]

https://murraywaas.substack.com/p/exclusive-after-he-left-office-donald


Months after he had left office, former president Donald Trump, directed his former chief-of-staff, Mark Meadows to leak highly classified government records regarding Peter Strzok, the former Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division, to the press. In the final days of Trump’s presidency, Meadows had removed the classified files from the White House, which Trump and Meadows believed would discredit Strzok.

The explosive ramifications of such a knowing and willful leak of classified information by Trump, or by someone on his behalf, at his direction, after he left office, is that Trump would have potentially committed a felony.

As president, Trump enjoyed a virtually absolute and unfettered constitutional authority to declassify virtually almost any government secrets he so wished. But once gone from office, Trump no longer had any legal authority or power beyond that of an ordinary citizen to declassify government papers or; much less leak classified records. Any provision of classified information at that time would be a crime.

Brad Moss, an attorney specializing in national security law, explained to me: “Anything Trump had in his possession that was still classified and that he gave to a reporter or anyone else unauthorized to receive it, after 12:01 pm on January 21, 2021, was unlawful as a legal matter.”

*snip*

[lame54]

1. Put it on the pile

[Redleg]

5. Another day, another potential felony

But we just have to investigate Hunter Biden, a private citizen.

[Aristus]

2. Yeah, but please, whatever you do, don't arrest him or anything.

That would break my heart...

[Lovie777]

3. GQPs' donors want DeSatan.........

although the rate DeSatan is going, he may kick himself out.

[Kingofalldems]

4. That is a felony.

[calimary]

8. This.

And is it just another one that this bastard will get away with?

WHY do people wilt before him. Fans, denialists, even investigators and others in position to hold him accountable. WHY do they NOT tie him down, at least physically? Why is he allowed to wriggle free - every time???

[onenote]

6. This is a different take on an earlier story.

https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-meadows-planned-hand-over-fbi-file-conservative-journalist-nyt-2022-8

[Zorro]

7. There should be an investigation to see if Trump ever did anything legal in his entire life

[txwhitedove]

9. Nope, nada, nil, never.

[Silent3]

10. Think of the destruction to our democratic institutions...

...if we respond quickly! For the good of all that is fair and just, please, no consequences for Trump for at least four years!

[Bev54]

11. This could well help Strzok in his lawsuit, hope he talks to a few of these people.

[Prairie_Seagull]

12. Search Mark Medows house/s with less scared FBI.

[Joinfortmill]

13. If Meadows testifies to this, it is the smoking gun.

[onetexan]

21. Right. This mist be the 4th or 5th smoking gun

& nada. This Con knows how to skirt the legal system.q

[MontanaMama]

14. Add it to the stack of felonies for TDFG.

There will be more.

[Emile]

15. Any day now the DOJ will have him in handcuffs!

[FakeNoose]

16. Did Mark Meadows work for Chump after Jan. 21, 2021?

I wasn't aware that "Chief of Staff" was even a real job, after Chump (or any President) left office.

Why would Meadows obey Chump's orders to do something illegal?

[royable]

17. One word--kompromat.

[NewHendoLib]

18. Please, anyone! Lock that fucker up once and for all!!!

[keep_left]

19. Maybe someone here with legal expertise can explain this excerpt better.

As president, Trump enjoyed a virtually absolute and unfettered constitutional authority to declassify virtually almost any government secrets he so wished. But once gone from office, Trump no longer had any legal authority or power beyond that of an ordinary citizen to declassify government papers or; much less leak classified records. Any provision of classified information at that time would be a crime.

I think this may have been hashed out here earlier already. The unique declassification powers of the office of President may indeed be true, but IIRC, this does not give the President the ability to declassify anything they want without going through a legal process. This seems to be supported by certain legal concepts ( e.g. "born secret" ). In other words, Trump doesn't get to declassify, say, documents on nuclear weapons or locations of submarines, and even documents with lesser degrees of classification must still go through a process; Trump doesn't have the power to declassify by decree.

[Ilsa]

20. I think Peter Strzok (and maybe Lisa Page) are suing the Slobfather.

I hope so. I hope every day is a new lawsuit for the vindictive asshole.

[The Bopper]

22. We are seeing

The results of not bringing DJT to justice. His mini-T’s are out there promoting sedition, treason and attacking every group who doesn’t look, talk and think like them.

[Kid Berwyn]

23. Lock him up.

What happens to traitors, Dimdonnie?