Secrets and Laws @secretsandlaws Twitter profile

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

As someone who has worked on Espionage Act prosecutions, I think the most important revelation from this week's fillings is not just the photo & the sensitive markings it revealed, but the sheer number of classified documents at issue. This is not just bc of the shock value. /1

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Favorite part of the ruling so far. Basically telling Cannon: look, we could have just stopped here, but this is fun so we're gonna keep dunking on you for the next 12 pages.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

I'll bet DOJ is contemplating filing a motion for reconsideration rather than seeking immediate appeal. Why if it will be futile? To attach a declaration from an FBI Special Agent detailing the harm to nat'l security that may result from any restrictions on FBI's investigation./1

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

To recap: A federal judge in a civil case enjoined the Executive's chief law enforcement officer from looking TS/SCI government docs that his agency has had for four weeks because the private citizen who stole them might claim a privilege that belongs to the current Executive...

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

...were located during the search, that argument might have some legs. But with over 100 classified docs being located (1/3 of the total, after two "diligent" searches by the Trump team), that defense is simply not credible. /3

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

What's most troubling about Cannon entertaining Trump's Presidential Records Act argument is that's she's SEEN all the records now, during the Sec. 4 hearing. She knows they are all highly classified intel products. And yet she's still entertaining this "personal" record BS.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

It's incredibly strong circumstantial evidence of (a) willful retention and (b) intent to obstruct. Combine that with the location (only in 45 office and storage room, some in desk drawer), and the banner pages, and it's reasonable to conclude that the "oopsie" defense is gone./4

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

But hey, you knew that part. The more overlooked aspect is that the volume of classified documents also provides maximum flexibility for DOJ and the IC when determining which docs might be used at trial. It can't be understated how important this is. /5

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

First, for both 793(e) and obstruction, DOJ will need to establish willfulness or intentionality beyond a reasonable doubt. I always thought Trump's best defense would be "hey, we accidentally missed some docs." If it turned out that 10, 20, or even 30 classified docs... /2

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

3 months

If Trump really designated all the classified docs he took as "personal records," why did he return 184 of them to NARA & another 38 to DOJ in response to the subpoena? And then hide the rest from DOJ & his own attorney? And then attempt to destroy the evidence of all that?

Hugo Lowell

@hugolowell

3 months

Breaking: Trump asks Judge Cannon to dismiss the classified docs case on presidential immunity grounds, arguing Trump designated docs as personal under Presidential Records Act which made them “official acts” of the presidency

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Former DOJ/CES prosecutor @BVanGrack provided a preview of this process here, & I may expand on it later. But for now, see his thread below. What docs are used at trial, & whether they have to be disclosed publicly, could make or break a prosecution. /6

Brandon Van Grack

@BVanGrack

2 years

That leads DOJ and Intelligence Community to look for Goldilocks docs—not so sensitive that the Intel Community would prohibit disclosure to defense counsel/jury and not so bland that they don’t appear to implicate national security. 11/

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

If you only had 20 classified documents to choose from, the search for the "Goldilocks" documents Brandon referred to wld be difficult. But with over 100, that process becomes MUCH easier, giving prosecutors maximum flexibility to determine what docs can be used at trial..../9

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Proving that Trump possessed NDI was never going to be hard - the President gets the good (i.e., sensitive) stuff, and there's no evidence of declassification. The hard part was always going to be DOJ and the IC determining what docs could be used as the basis for charges. /7

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

p.s. I'm assuming DOJ wld want to focus at trial on the documents located during the search, after Trump was given 2 opportunities to return them, but I think all 300+ could theoretically be in play depending on what evidence they have of his earlier intent to conceal/retain them

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Some may be so sensitive that they'll be off the table for the IC. DOJ won't want to use others bc they will not be as persuasive with a jury. And while DOJ will argue that their contents shld only be shown to the jury & not the public, they can't be sure the judge will agree. /8

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

...and plenty of room for a Plan B and C option if they get adverse rulings from the judge. That flexibility will be incredibly important if DOJ elects to bring charges, as the risks of exposing sensitive information at trial is the #1 thing that could undo a prosecution. /10

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

3 months

Trump's lawyers are really arguing that he decided that several hundred highly classified intelligence reports were his "personal" records and that he had unfettered authority to do whatever he wanted with them. Let that sink in. Seems like it should be a bigger news story?

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

11 months

So, what stands out to me is the number of Espionage Act charges: 31! I was expecting 10-15 or so, but 31 shows that DOJ will be pursuing a VERY aggressive strategy in this case. That has some strengths, and some drawbacks. Here's what it tells me, in no particular order.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

In terms of options to choose from when looking for the "Goldilocks" documents, it's the difference between a limited prix fixe menu vs. a Cheesecake Factory menu. That difference could prove to be critical. /end

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

And mad props to the clerk who dug up this quote from the little-known Cobbledick case.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 month

For context, a normal start-up with just $5 million in annual revenue wouldn't make it beyond the Series B phase, & would be valued at under $100 million (more likely under $50 million). The blatant corruption here is beyond staggering. Just buying a politician out in the open.

Shane Goldmacher

@ShaneGoldmacher

1 month

"Trump Media is now valued at more than $6 billion — even though its flagship Truth Social digital platform took in just $3.3 million in revenue during the first nine months of 2023."

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Thanks to @rparloff , we now have confirmation that this whole jury instruction fiasco from Judge Cannon was actually suggested by Trump's lawyers.

Roger Parloff

@rparloff

2 months

For the backdrop to Judge Cannon's disturbing proposed jury instructions yesterday, here's a deep-dive dispatch on the Thurs Trump hearing in Fort Pierce that led to it. (To find parts pertinent to those instructions, search for 'PRA' or 'personal.') 1/2

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Katie Porter stupidly uses the term "rigged" one time & is widely condemned by Democrats. Donald Trump uses the term "rigged" every day, in every speech, & led a violent insurrection based on this lie, & receives near-unanimous GOP leader support. The parties are not the same.

Mueller, She Wrote

@MuellerSheWrote

2 months

You know what you said, and that loaded words have power. I never thought I’d see a democrat cry about rigged elections. This is shameful, and it’s manipulative.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Reporters: If you've ever asked Democrats how they're going to address the costs of their climate solutions (and you have), please consider asking Republicans what their plan is for dealing with the huge economic losses that come from doing nothing. Thx.

AP Climate

@AP_Climate

2 months

Climate change cost U.S. ski industry billions, study says, and future depends on emissions.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Can the Senate enact an updated version of the Byrd rule where every dollar spent on hurricane, flood, and wildfire relief has to be offset with a dollar spent on addressing climate change? Seems pretty silly to do the former without the latter.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 month

I am here for the Jack Smith sass.

Hugo Lowell

@hugolowell

1 month

NEW: Special Counsel signals they could seek mandamus against Judge Cannon in Trump classified docs case if she proceeds with jury instructions based on the PRA: "Both scenarios rest on an unstated and fundamentally flawed legal premise"

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Seems like “defund the schools” (which Trump actually wants to do) should get maybe at least a quarter of the political coverage as “defund the police” did (which Biden never wanted to do).

Joe Conason

@JoeConason

2 months

Why isn't this front-page news @nytimes @washingtonpost @CNN @MSNBC

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

This is a great idea. No one else would ever be granted access to classified information while under federal indictment for Espionage Act charges. ODNI should continue this "norm" until the prosecution is resolved. No exceptions.

Brian Beutler

@brianbeutler

2 months

Over on the better site, @hilzoy made the point that Biden should withhold briefings from Trump until his criminal case is finished. Put the spotlight on Aileen Cannon. Unequivocally love this idea.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

11 months

Since we've now had a former president threaten a federal prosecutor's spouse, and a congressperson call for civil war, it seems like it'd be a good time for the Chief Justice to issue a statement condemning such threats to our justice system? It's being drafted now, right???

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 year

The only prediction one can make about whether GOP leaders will abandon Trump in 2024 is that their decision will not be guided by any sense of moral principle.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 year

Gonna guess that Dominion's law firm had a document review tagging system that looked something like this: ▢ "Hot" doc ▢ "Super hot" doc ▢ "Holy shit" doc ▢ "You've got to be fucking kidding me" doc ▢ "How do these people sleep at night?" doc ▢ "We gettin' paid $$$" doc

Orin Kerr

@OrinKerr

1 year

This is quite a legal brief. It was filed today in Delaware state court by Dominion Voting Sytems in its defamation lawsuit against Fox News. (via @nytimes )

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

6 months

This is NOT a victory for DOJ. It's clear that the trial date will be moved back when we get to March 1, continuing Cannon's piecemeal approach of chipping away at DOJ's case. There's just not enough time left after March 1 to complete the remaining CIPA litigation before trial.

Kyle Cheney

@kyledcheney

6 months

BREAKING: Judge Cannon will NOT delay Donald Trump's May 20 trial date at this time — but will reconsider schedule on March 1 after more negotiation over classified discovery.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

14 days

From what I gather, if President Jefferson had just ordered Madison to execute Marbury, instead of refusing to deliver a commission to him, at least four current Supreme Court Justices would have been cool with that.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

It's now been three weeks since the FBI searched former President Trump's MAL estate. Where do things stand? Here's a mega 🧵summarizing what we know wrt the classified records only (i.e., putting aside obstruction, the special master, unconfirmed reporting, etc.). /1

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

As explained below, DOJ has a strong argument that restrictions on its investigation into potentially EP docs that are classified will (a) harm the IC assessments and (b) harm its own active counterintelligence investigation into what has transpired. /2

Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

For a quick explainer on why Judge Cannon's statement that her order will not "impact[] the Government's ongoing national security review" is hogwash, please see below. DOJ should seek immediate appeal.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Just elaborating on this question from @emptywheel : there's a zero percent chance that DOJ voluntary brings classified information before this judge, whether it be in the more detailed property receipt she ordered, or in any other filing. /1

emptywheel (synonym: control)

@emptywheel

2 years

@NatlSecCnslrs @BradMossEsq @secretsandlaws Am I mistaken that she envisions a list of stolen [Top Secret] documents that would be shared with Trump's un-and under-cleared counsel?

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Not sure that railing against Lizzo is an effective way to win back white suburban moms in their 40s.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

3 months

If you're an optimist, note that these hearings will be the first time Cannon gets to see the charged documents & read about the potential harm to national security resulting from their unauthorized disclosure. If there's ever going to be a come to Jesus moment, this would be it.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Under the Special Counsel regs, the Attorney General is still the person in charge ultimately. The buck stops with him. In light of today's revelations, Garland should issue a statement saying that he has no confidence in Hur or his report. He needs to take some accountability.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

11 months

Reporters: Anytime a Trump toady tries to claim that the Presidential Records Act gives Trump authority to keep Top Secret/SCI records as "personal records," please ask them to explain what personal purpose Trump was keeping them for. Because that would be an even bigger scandal.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

6 months

DOJ wisely asks Cannon to set a 12/18 deadline for the CIPA Sec. 5 notice, which is where defendant is required to provide notice of the class. info he intends to use at trial. Since there will be litigation about whether the notice is specific enough, smart to get this started.

Mueller, She Wrote

@MuellerSheWrote

6 months

Judge Cannon failed to set a deadline for CIPA section 5 in her last ruling, so Jack Smith is asking her to set the deadline for 12/18.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

...after that private citizen was already given two chances to give them back. Checks out.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

My prediction: The Biden Administration would very much like to continue these briefings, as it won't want to break from precedent & they are not that sensitive. But it ultimately will not do so bc of the MAL prosecution, for two distinct reasons.

Hugo Lowell

@hugolowell

2 months

Coming soon: Trump potentially receiving intel briefings as a presidential candidate while he prepares for trial in Florida over his retention of classified docs

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Remember, in the schedule DOJ proposed on March 1, the CIPA Sec. 5 notice and expert disclosures were to be filed yesterday, with a hearing on any outstanding motion to compel issues to be tomorrow. It's 18 days later, & Cannon hasn't ruled on any of this. It's getting absurd.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

So what comes next in the Trump DOJ investigation? One critical initial step will be conducting a classification review of any potentially classified records that were seized at MAL. How will that work? Follow along... 1/

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

11 months

Respectfully, I'd suggest the media should provide more coverage to the fact that unchecked climate change will cause millions of migrants to desperately flee unlivable conditions in their home countries -- and in the not too distant future.

Ivo Daalder

@IvoHDaalder

11 months

Can someone pls explain why 5 missing people on an undersea adventure are worth more resources and news coverage than 800 migrants seeking a way out of despair when their vessels were in trouble? There’s something seriously wrong with these priorities.

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@secretsandlaws

2 years

What a time to be alive.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

The @FTC can’t be far behind, and in fact is probably way ahead.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

9 months

@kyledcheney Looking forward to a series of @petestrzok posts showing pictures of just how secure MAL has been since Trump left office.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

You would think that Trump's "out of context" defenders would realize that tomorrow he's totally going to come out and say: "No, I mean a real bloodbath, for the entire country."

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

19 days

6 months of delay. Thousands of lives lost. Hundreds of thousands more suffering. Hard-fought gains, wiped away. And what was accomplished? Absolutely nothing, except temporarily appeasing Trump and MTG. Shameful.

Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 month

Foreign policy implications aside, I just can't imagine the guilt of knowing that thousands of innocent Ukrainians would die as a result of my decision to do nothing, especially if I was only doing it to appease Donald Trump and MTG. @SpeakerJohnson , this stain won't wash away.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

You can get that in by filing a motion for reconsideration. Yes, she'll deny it and there will be a delay, but then the FBI declaration will be part of the district court record. And then if I'm DOJ, I appeal only to the extent the SM is considering executive privilege. /5

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 year

While I always urge caution when reading the tea leaves, this could be a sign that the document investigations have largely concluded and that charging decisions have been made (or are at least imminent).

Matt Zapotosky

@mattzap

1 year

Congressional leaders gain access to classified documents from the homes of Trump, Biden and Pence. From @LACaldwellDC , @amybwang and @lizcgoodwin

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

I agree with @MuellerSheWrote and @BradMossEsq that as for the second scenario in Cannon's order, DOJ will likely argue that if this were the law, she should just dismiss those counts now as a matter of law, and then they'd appeal to the 11th Circuit.

Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Was able to workshop Judge Cannon's order with @KatiePhang . I think we made sense of it, and yes it's not good. The optimistic take is that maybe once Cannon sees how truly absurd both scenarios are in terms of instructing a jury, she'll decide not to go down this road.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

To further recap: a federal judge shut down an active FBI counterintelligence investigation relating to TS/SCI documents found in a private residence that is probably the #1 target for foreign intelligence services the US (outside of government facilities). /1

Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

To further recap: And if the exec. privilege claim is successful, that judge could PERMANENTLY enjoin the nation’s chief law enforcement officer from ever viewing or investigating Top Secret/SCI government records that a private citizen took home & repeatedly refused to return.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

The problem when you're looking to appeal is that an appeals court might look at this argument and say "fine, but can you point me to factual support for this in the record?" Appeals courts are used to having a record. That's understandably difficult to create in emergency... /3

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Ahem: 1. There is NO required process that Presidents have to follow when declassifying information. They SHOULD follow a process, but don't have to. 2. But there has to be evidence that declassification actually happened. You can't just make shit up. Focus on this instead. /1

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 month

Update: Trump's lawyers are now arguing that he didn't even have to determine that the classified intelligence reports were his "personal" records. By simply removing them from the White House, he was entitled to ignore the PRA and violate the Espionage Act. This is insanity.

Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

3 months

Trump's lawyers are really arguing that he decided that several hundred highly classified intelligence reports were his "personal" records and that he had unfettered authority to do whatever he wanted with them. Let that sink in. Seems like it should be a bigger news story?

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Of course, Trump's PRA argument is completely frivolous, and should actually be scandalous if the press was doing its job.

Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

3 months

Trump's lawyers are really arguing that he decided that several hundred highly classified intelligence reports were his "personal" records and that he had unfettered authority to do whatever he wanted with them. Let that sink in. Seems like it should be a bigger news story?

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

...litigation seeking a preliminary injunction. With the benefit of hindsight, DOJ would love to have a declaration from an FBI agent making the points in my earlier tweet about the nat'l security issues at stake, and how you can't separate the FBI investigation and IC review. /4

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Remember that one of Trump's first acts as President was giving a partisan, grievance-filled speech in front of the CIA Memorial Wall, which honors the sacrifice and memory of the over one hundred officers who gave their lives for the country. /1

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 year

Yes, Trump is really arguing that the Presidential Records Act, passed in the wake of the Nixon scandals, actually confers criminal immunity to former Presidents who steal government records from the White House. Checks out.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

23 days

Caitlin Clark will make a little over $2,000 per game next season. Right now, it'd cost at least $1,000 to get tickets for one family of four to see her play in most WNBA arenas this upcoming year. This. Is. Outrageous.

NBACentral

@TheDunkCentral

24 days

Caitlin Clark’s contract (Via @spotrac )

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

The declaration allows the court to say: "Based on the unique and serious nat'l security issues raised in this case, we find that any potential EP assertion is overriden by the current Executive's compelling need to conduct its investigation into these records. See FBI Decl." /8

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 year

If Trump had just promptly returned the docs to the Archives like Biden's team did here, DOJ would have never raided MAL and never seriously considered charges. /

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 year

Pro-tip: Don't write a book while doing crimes, or shortly thereafter. It was one of the ways John Kirakou (former CIA officer) was caught, and I know of some near misses too.

Mueller, She Wrote

@MuellerSheWrote

1 year

NEW: Jeffrey Clark tried and failed to prevent the DoJ from getting 331 draft copies of his memoir under the auspices of attorney-client and work product privilege. The book contains an explanation of his fraudulent draft letter to Georgia AND trumps reaction to it.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Narrow ruling. If DOJ does this, it will enhance its ability to win on appeal -- the delay is worth it IMO. Even the conservative Supreme Court would have problems ignoring this declaration. I would imagine the prosecutors are having this debate with Civil Appellate right now. /9

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

10 months

Today's throttling shenanigans are obviously an orchestrated attempt to distract from the breaking news about Trump's call to Ducey...

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Cannon did the right thing by not permitting Nauta & DeOliveira to access the classified MAL docs. But don't overlook the epic self-own here. Bc of this effort, she has now been extensively briefed on the contents of those docs & why their disclosure is harmful to nat'l security

Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

3 months

Ironically, the only reason DOJ will be talking about the charged docs w/ Cannon (& submitting declarations about them) is bc Nauta & DeOliveira are requesting access to them in discovery, & she is requiring DOJ to address that through a Sec. 4 motion (which is unusual). Bravo!

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Putting a finer point on this: Raskin is a stellar TRIAL prosecutor with extensive experience in nat'l security cases. The current DOJ/CES team could easily handle the pre-trial investigation, preparing discovery obligations, IC coordination, etc. That's why they exist... /1

Jennifer Rodgers

@JenGRodgers

2 years

Best news I got all day! David Raskin is a top-notch career prosecutor, and they’re bringing him in from a district not otherwise involved. This suggests DOJ is *very* serious about trying to charge this. Raskin is a guy I would want on that team for sure.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Running total of times that Trump could have asserted that he declassified some of the documents at issue but didn't. 1. Throughout 2021 dealings with NARA 2. Throughout 2022 dealings with DOJ 3. Special Master complaint 4. Hearing w/ Judge Cannon 5. Special Master proposal

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

But most importantly, this allows you to get the FBI declaration in the record, and then the 11th Circuit can hang its hat on that declaration. Even a favorable panel for DOJ will be leery of making a sweeping decision about an FPOTUS's inability to claim executive privilege. /7

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

3 months

Judge Cannon: I'm gonna share DOJ's ex parte declaration about criminal investigations into witness threats with Trump's legal team. But don't worry, it's still under seal. Trump's Legal Team: Cool, thanks. We're gonna share some of it publicly now.

Mueller, She Wrote

@MuellerSheWrote

3 months

NEW: Trump has filed his response to Jack Smith's motion for Cannon to reconsider her CLEAR ERROR in ordering witnesses names be unsealed. Just as I predicted, Trump is arguing that in trying to file evidence of witnesses being harassed under seal and ex parte... 1/

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

At least during the search warrant litigation, she hadn't seen them, & there were some personal or some potentially borderline unclassified records caught up in the FBI search. So one can maybe give her a break there. But now, there's just no excuse. She knows the reality.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

It’s gonna be worse than ever, folks.

Jeff Seldin

@jseldin

2 months

NEW: @FBI joins White House, Senate intelligence committee chair in sounding alarm about foreign interference in #Election2024 "This election cycle, the US will face more adversaries, moving at a faster pace & enabled by new technology per Dir Christopher Wray at @INSAlliance

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Shorter DOJ: This is a totally pointless exercise, as we’re still not giving personal records back to Trump, and heck we might even use them against him at his trial.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Well, thanks to the Supreme Court, Texas owns US immigration policy now. If you have any complaints about illegal immigration, please direct them to @GregAbbott_TX & @KenPaxtonTX since they are now responsible for it. I'm sure the media will act accordingly in its coverage.

Kyle Griffin

@kylegriffin1

2 months

The Supreme Court has allowed Texas to enforce a new law that gives local police the power to arrest migrants. The liberal justices dissented. Sotomayor: "The court gives a green light to a law that will upend the longstanding federal-state balance of power and sow chaos."

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@secretsandlaws

2 years

The fact that Durham repeatedly used the term “no collusion” during his close — a legally meaningless phrase that Trump inserted into the public discourse — tells you everything you need to know about his worldview. He’s pursuing a political vendetta, not a prosecution.

emptywheel (synonym: control)

@emptywheel

2 years

John Durham's Last Word: An Outright Lie about the Mueller Conclusions

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

That way, you get the SM appointed & working through the attorney-client privilege & personal record issues. If you lose EP on appeal, at least the SM will already be in place. And seeing how things go with the SM will allow DOJ to determine whether to give up on the appeal./6

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Hang it in the Louvre: "As novel and unprecedented as that claim is, the claim that he makes here is even more outlandish: that he is immune from crimes which...entirely post-date his term of office. Such a claim is not only unprecedented; it is entirely without basis in law."

Katie Phang

@KatiePhang

2 months

And here’s the Government’s Opposition to Trump’s Motion to Dismiss based on presidential immunity:

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

4 years

Yes, the destruction of records during the transition can be a crime, but there are things that House Dems and FOIA requesters can do now to help deter that destruction, while bolstering a future prosecution if it occurs anyway. Check out my Lawfare article for an explainer. /1

Lawfare

@lawfare

4 years

"How to Ensure That Trump Preserves Official Documents," the latest from @secretsandlaws :

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

🚨***New Trump defense***🚨 It's not fair to expect the Commander-in-Chief and chief authority over classified information to know that he can't just steal Top Secret/SCI documents from the White House and store them next the shitter at his social club.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Today's hearing in the MAL case will be very telling. First, Trump's separate presidential immunity motion hinges on this PRA argument. It's the "official act" underlying the immunity assertion. If Cannon thinks it's a close call, that means a stay is likely coming.

Katie Phang

@KatiePhang

2 months

Today at 10 a.m.: There's a non-evidentiary hearing on Trump's Motion to Dismiss Counts 1-32 on Unconstitutional Vagueness and Trump and Nauta's Motion to Dismiss Superseding Indictment Based on the President Records Act.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

If Trump wants to put on a defense that he thought the PRA made his retention of these highly classified records lawful, that's fine -- she should let him, and Tom Fitton can be his star witness. But going beyond that just gets into crazy town.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

11 months

In a case of this magnitude, it is not necessarily a bad thing to make DOJ (a) justify the need to make filings under seal & (b) partially redact them rather than fully sealing them. If DOJ does this & she orders the witness list released anyway, then you can freak out.

Anna Bower

@AnnaBower

11 months

NEW: Judge Aileen Cannon denies the Special Counsel’s request to file under seal a list of 84 potential witnesses that Trump and Nauta are not allowed to communicate with about the case.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 months

Worrisome. And I might be more worried (or less) if this sentence was comprehensible: "[T]he parties must engage with the following competing scenarios & offer alternative draft text that assumes each scenario to be a correct formulation of the law to be issued to the jury...."

emptywheel (synonym: control)

@emptywheel

2 months

Aileen Cannon ordered both sides in Trump's stolen docs trial to write jury instructions AS IF Presdential Records Act says something other than it does.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

Oh, and of course this declaration would give us yet another unprecedented view into an active national security investigation. Given the stakes, DOJ would likely reveal even more than it has previously, esp. about the work that lies ahead. So if you see this on the docket...

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

10 months

Samuel Alito, Supreme Court nominee, Jan. 2006: "[I]t is inappropriate for a sitting judge...to offer opinions on constitutional questions that are percolating at that time and may well come before that judge...."

Nate Raymond

@nateraymond

10 months

Justice Alito tells the @WSJ that Congress has no business policing SCOTUS. "I know this is a controversial view, but I’m willing to say it... No provision in the Constitution gives them the authority to regulate the Supreme Court—period."

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

5 months

Shorter Nauta: Nothing was stopping me from illegally accessing all these highly classified docs when they stored next to the MAL shitter, so why should DOJ be allowed to keep me from looking at them in a SCIF today??? Interesting legal strategy. H/T to @rparloff .

Roger Parloff

@rparloff

5 months

In USA v Trump (MAL), def Walt Nauta's attys' request for access to briefing on classified docs claims that Nauta previously had "unrestricted access to all the classified information at issue." I knew he had a security clearance, but thought he just a White House valet.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

11 months

Trusty now appears to be making an argument that the documents were implicitly declassified by virtue of the fact that Trump decided to keep them at MAL as his last act as President. They've gone from "declassified by thinking about it" to "declassified by stealing."

Bradley P. Moss

@BradMossEsq

11 months

I dare Trusty to trot out these arguments in a courtroom. A federal judge will body slam him and throw him halfway across the Beltway for it. Of course, he won’t do it. He is trying the case in the media. He doesn’t want to become Rudy Giuliani.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

11 months

For all the talk of Trump's incompetent attorneys, the indictment shows that his worst lawyer of all was Bill Barr. Barr told him that as president, he could obstruct an investigation with impunity, as long as it was for a noble end. That advice has come home to roost.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

3 months

In part of today's hearing, Cannon is permitting defense counsel to argue their motion for access to the Section 4 filings under seal & ex parte (i.e., not public, DOJ not present). This makes no sense; the briefs are all public & adversarial, so the argument should be too.

Hugo Lowell

@hugolowell

3 months

New: Trump is attending a court hearing in Ft Pierce as his lawyers present their defense theories to Judge Cannon in the classified docs case, broadly seeking to reject the Special Counsel’s redactions to the classified discovery. @guardian

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 month

@KatiePhang 's post from last night hits on the biggest problem with Cannon's ruling. Not adopting a jury instruction is fine. But in denying Trump's MTD under the PRA, she should have explicitly rejected the interpretation of the PRA set forth in her scenario (b) instruction.

Katie Phang

@KatiePhang

1 month

Some More of Katie's Sidebar: If you look at the language in Cannon's order, she was, in my opinion, VERY careful and quite wily about the way she drafted this ruling. She intentionally stated that "accepting the allegations of the Superseding Indictment as true" (which is the…

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

"Former CIA Director Praises Neo-Fascist Takeover of Italy" is probably not a headline that Harry Truman ever expected to see.

Mike Pompeo

@mikepompeo

2 years

Congratulations to @GiorgiaMeloni . Italy deserves and needs strong conservative leadership. Buona Fortuna!

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@secretsandlaws

1 month

Shorter Trump: Fresh off Richard Nixon's abuses, the drafters of the Presidential Records Act wanted to make it EASIER for former presidents to steal government records with impunity, not harder.

Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 month

Update: Trump's lawyers are now arguing that he didn't even have to determine that the classified intelligence reports were his "personal" records. By simply removing them from the White House, he was entitled to ignore the PRA and violate the Espionage Act. This is insanity.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

4 months

Literally nothing is happening between DOJ's Dec. 20 brief and Feb. 15-16 that will have any bearing on the Sec. 4 hearing. She could have this hearing tomorrow if she wanted to. The delay is inexcusable & serves no purpose other than to support pushing the trial date back.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

30 days

While the worst case scenario was avoided, I would not describe this is a victory for Smith. They'll still have the burden to justify all redactions, & Cannon made clear she'll have a high standard. This will still create burdensome sideshow litigation about these redactions.

Kyle Cheney

@kyledcheney

30 days

JUST IN: Judge Cannon has sided with Jack Smith (though, once again, you wouldn't be able to tell from the scolding she delivers in her filing), agreeing to keep witness identities sealed in Trump-case filings over security concerns.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

1 month

If the words "supports national abortion ban after X weeks" aren't included in your story on Monday, you are doing journalism wrong.

Sahil Kapur

@sahilkapur

1 month

Donald Trump says tonight he will release a statement on abortion “tomorrow morning,” which he’s prefacing with this:

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

If a sitting President lawfully declassified documents while in office, there's a zero percent chance DOJ prosecutes him under the Espionage Act for retaining them. People should really stop suggesting otherwise. (But he didn't declassify them, so it doesn't matter anyway)

Barb McQuade

@BarbMcQuade

2 years

Even if Trump tried to declassify these documents, and the lawyers submit no declaration that he did, declassification is not a defense to willfully retaining national defense information or concealing documents.

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Secrets and Laws

@secretsandlaws

2 years

I mean, the entire purpose of the Executive Privilege doctrine is to enable the President to fulfill his constitutional duties, not prevent it.

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