2022 gave the American public some shiny objects to chase….the Russian invasion of Ukraine…..a mass shooting in Uvalde…..the abortion ruling by SCOTUS and now the FBI raid on Trump’s Mar a Lago property.
With the latest raid on the property of ex-president Trump there has been more focus on the Espionage Act because of the documents that were allegedly found at the president’s Mar a Lago property.
What is the Espionage Act?
Espionage Act essentially made it a crime for any person to convey information intended to interfere with the U.S. armed forces prosecution of the war effort or to promote the success of the country’s enemies. Anyone found guilty of such acts would be subject to a fine of $10,000 and a prison sentence of 20 years.
The Espionage Act was reinforced by the Sedition Act of the following year, which imposed similarly harsh penalties on anyone found guilty of making false statements that interfered with the prosecution of the war; insulting or abusing the U.S. government, the flag, the Constitution or the military; agitating against the production of necessary war materials; or advocating, teaching or defending any of these acts.
That brings us to the FBI raid on the Trump property in Florida.
After a week punctuated with reprimands of the Department of Justice by Republican lawmakers and their subsequent demands for accountability following an FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence, the search warrant released Friday indicates the search was conducted in connection with, among other things, the Espionage Act.
The Espionage Act is actually a series of statutes under 18 US Code Chapter 37 related to the collection, retention, or dissemination of national defense or classified information. The Mar-a-Lago search warrant referred to Section 793 — “Gathering, transmitting or losing defense information,” which doesn’t just cover “spying” in the sense that many think of when they hear the term. Section 793 specifically states that people legally granted access to national defense documents — people like the former president — are subject to punishment should they improperly retain that information.
Under the Presidential Records Act, which relates to the retention of government documents by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), official documents and other material or information a president or a vice president may have obtained while in office must go to NARA for preservation.
For over a week now Trump supporters have been losing their minds over this raid.
The back and forth will continue because it makes great fodder for the upcoming election.
More to come I am sure.
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Is it any wonder why the rest of the world sits back and laughs at us, while they continue to collect foreign aid from us?
Nope it is no wonder. We are silly. chuq
Trump knows the releasing the affidavits connected to the Mar a Lago FBI search too early is going to throw kinks into the ongoing investigation, making the task of law enforcement even more difficult than it is. That is why he is joining the chorus of voices demanding the early release of the affidavit information. He is really slick and he is playing every aspect of this investigation to his own personal advantage and the problem with that is that he will most likely wiggle out of every legal challenge that faces him ..will come out smelling like a rose and will go ahead and win the election of 2024 and be free to embark on a 4-year-revenge term against his perceived personal enemies everywhere.
And they called Clinton slick….Trump is far better at it. chuq
A fat worm with exponential wiggling abilities.
Exactly chuq
Imagine you heard about another country where a former President was caught with classified nuclear documents…you’d be happy to see the Traitor locked up.
Dead right, John.
AS a person who had to sign the “secret’s act” I do want him locked up forever. chuq
What’s wrong here is the NO ONE is above the law…when Nixon tried to say “if the President does it, it can’t be illegal” that failed because its just not true…and when you see stories about billions given to the son-in-law by a foreign country…for what? Can you imagine a Benedict Arnold in the White House and now selling our secrets?
This is just beyond the bail….the problem is he has SCOTUS in his pocket and will probably get away with it. chuq
From across an ocean, I am at a loss as to why he has not been arrested and charged. All this time-wasting and revealing of evidence will only ruin any possibility of a trial later on.
(Or perhaps that’s the whole point of it?)
Best wishes, Pete.
He is a master at never being held accountable for anything. chuq