Trump says he can declassify documents just "by thinking about it".

[camille70]

I believe it says his attorney's may be holding that for defense purposes.

The special master basically rejected that premise, but it doesn't make sense in the first place. IMO, basically what they want to do is rile up his supporters and influence public opinion by saying the documents were declassified and he had a right to them, but he isn't willing to go on the record under oath and state this in court. His lawyer said they shouldn't be in a position to have to disclose declarations about the classification and that it could disclose a defense to the merits of any subsequent indictment. Yet Trump is all over social media and doing interviews implying they were all declassified, so how is it going to EXPOSE his defense to go on the record in court and state the EXACT same thing, IF what he is saying all over social media is TRUE? IMO, the only strategy this interferes with is his strategy to use the situation to milk his donors.

It seems they were hoping the special master would slow things down and at one point basically even told him he was moving too fast. He's essentially performing redundant work tho. The DOJ had already had a filter team set aside all the items potentially subject to executive privilege, the other 11000 or so documents were itemized and so we are waiting on Trumps legal team to indicate which ones were "planted" by the FBI. Other than the request to state which were "declassified", the 100 docs are a non issue as the DOJ has permission to keep and use them. Lets see Trump's legal team will meet the deadlines issued. Lets also see if they are actually willing to state in court that any of the docs were planted or give a list of what was declassified. My money is they won't for both.

 

[inquiring mind]

Trump’s lawyers must be pretty confident Trump is going to be indicted if they are already telling people they are planning a defense strategy.

What would you expect? Dems would probe him for blowing his nose in public... and televise it.

 

[inquiring mind]

Trump signed a law making it a crime to mishandle classified information. He did not follow the legal procedures required to declassify the Mar A Lago collection of Top Secret documents. He can not pass laws by merely thinking about it. It takes an Act of Congress, the President and Supreme Court to pass or change a law. The Feds requested return of these Federal documents. He did not cooperate, but obstructed justice. Then Trump complained about the FBI enforcing the law, like they were the Gestapo in his opinion.

From the many leaks we've seen, the declassified material was probably safer at Mar-A-Lago than at the White House. Like every other accusation against him, this will come to naught... after the mid-term and presidential elections though.

 

[GreatLakes4Ever]

What would you expect? Dems would probe him for blowing his nose in public... and televise it.

I would expect a lawyer to know the best way to not lose a court case is not end up in court in the first place. Showing evidence that Trump declassified those documents now could do that. Saying they won’t show it until they are in court is a stupid strategy.

It looks to me like they are using the same strategy as they did with the election. Say whatever lies they want in the court of public opinion to try to argue their case. The problem comes in a court of law where there are real repercussions to lying. They can’t use their arguments there because they are nothing but lies. It’s why Trump got ground into dust in the courts in late 2020 and it is why it will happen again.

If I’m wrong we will see Trump’s lawyers respond to Trump’s hand pick Special Master’s demand to see evidence that Trump declassified those documents and that the FBI has planted evidence against Trump. So far, although Trump is galavanting around the country spouting both claims in public, his lawyers have refused to do either in court.

 

[inquiring mind]

The special master basically rejected that premise, but it doesn't make sense in the first place. IMO, basically what they want to do is rile up his supporters and influence public opinion by saying the documents were declassified and he had a right to them, but he isn't willing to go on the record under oath and state this in court. His lawyer said they shouldn't be in a position to have to disclose declarations about the classification and that it could disclose a defense to the merits of any subsequent indictment. Yet Trump is all over social media and doing interviews implying they were all declassified, so how is it going to EXPOSE his defense to go on the record in court and state the EXACT same thing, IF what he is saying all over social media is TRUE? IMO, the only strategy this interferes with is his strategy to use the situation to milk his donors.

It seems they were hoping the special master would slow things down and at one point basically even told him he was moving too fast. He's essentially performing redundant work tho. The DOJ had already had a filter team set aside all the items potentially subject to executive privilege, the other 11000 or so documents were itemized and so we are waiting on Trumps legal team to indicate which ones were "planted" by the FBI. Other than the request to state which were "declassified", the 100 docs are a non issue as the DOJ has permission to keep and use them. Lets see Trump's legal team will meet the deadlines issued. Lets also see if they are actually willing to state in court that any of the docs were planted or give a list of what was declassified. My money is they won't for both.

My money... the only documents Dems were concerned about finding were concerning them. If there were none, they'll make the most they can out of 'mishandling,' if there were, they will be filed with Hunter's laptop.

 

[inquiring mind]

I would expect a lawyer to know the best way to not lose a court case is not end up in court in the first place. Showing evidence that Trump declassified those documents now could do that. Saying they won’t show it until they are in court is a stupid strategy.

It looks to me like they are using the same strategy as they did with the election. Say whatever lies they want in the court of public opinion to try to argue their case. The problem comes in a court of law where there are real repercussions to lying. They can’t use their arguments there because they are nothing but lies. It’s why Trump got ground into dust in the courts in late 2020 and it is why it will happen again.

If I’m wrong we will see Trump’s lawyers respond to Trump’s hand pick Special Master’s demand to see evidence that Trump declassified those documents and that the FBI has planted evidence against Trump. So far, although Trump is galavanting around the country spouting both claims in public, his lawyers have refused to do either in court.

You must not have read the link I posted. Apparently, a sitting president can declassify by just 'thinking about it.'

 

[Hank77]

»The special master’s work includes inspecting roughly 11,000 documents, including about 100 marked as classified.« (source)

I believe the appellate court decided that the classified docs will not be viewed by the S Master. They overruled Judge Cannon on almost all of her decisions.

 

[Hank77]

You must not have read the link I posted. Apparently, a sitting president can declassify by just 'thinking about it.'

No, they can't, and it's just too funny to even think someone would believe that. That's another lie that is being spread by Trump and Fox News. But I guess Trump knows his supporters, many Q believers, well.

 

[inquiring mind]

No, they can't, and it's just too funny to even think someone would believe that. That's another lie that is being spread by Trump and Fox News. But I guess Trump knows his supporters, many Q believers, well.

There's plenty of other respectable opinions out there that point to the broad power of a sitting president to declassify material... if you'll let yourself see it?

 

[DaisyDay]

You must not have read the link I posted. Apparently, a sitting president can declassify by just 'thinking about it.'

Apparently, you didn't understand the link you posted because it does NOT say that a sitting president can declassify by just 'thinking about it' because there are still procedures.

Although there aren’t specific protocols that the president must follow to declassify a document, federal courts have ruled that they will “refuse to recognize what they consider to be an inference of declassification,” McClanahan said.

The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals wrote in a 2020 decision about whether statements made by then-President Trump declassified the existence of a CIA program that “declassification, even by the president, must follow established procedures.”

There's plenty of other respectable opinions out there that point to the broad power of a sitting president to declassify material... if you'll let yourself see it?

However, that broad power does not include by mind control. To declassify a document, he has to actually declassify it.​

 

[dqhall]

Trump is no longer president. If the current administration/president states something is classified, it's classified. Classifications can go back and forth.

If Obama had said he classified or declassified something while he was in office, and during Trumps term 2017-2021 he changed it, whose classification would be valid? Why or why not as a former president would Obama have the power to classify/declassify or not honor what Trump's CURRENT administration decided? If Obama had declassified something, would he be entitled to own the document and take it home as his own?

There are record keeping requirements to keep track of what documents are classified and what ones are not classified. Trump did not ask anyone to fill out the appropriate forms. If he declassified them, I should be able to read them too. He did not declassify any of these. As a civilian he does not have a security clearance unless Biden filled out the forms granting him one. The U.S. is a democracy, not a dictatorship.

 

[Valletta]

I would expect a lawyer to know the best way to not lose a court case is not end up in court in the first place. Showing evidence that Trump declassified those documents now could do that. Saying they won’t show it until they are in court is a stupid strategy.

It looks to me like they are using the same strategy as they did with the election. Say whatever lies they want in the court of public opinion to try to argue their case. The problem comes in a court of law where there are real repercussions to lying. They can’t use their arguments there because they are nothing but lies. It’s why Trump got ground into dust in the courts in late 2020 and it is why it will happen again.

If I’m wrong we will see Trump’s lawyers respond to Trump’s hand pick Special Master’s demand to see evidence that Trump declassified those documents and that the FBI has planted evidence against Trump. So far, although Trump is galavanting around the country spouting both claims in public, his lawyers have refused to do either in court.

There are no criminal penalties for the Presidential Records Act. Remember Obama kept classified records in a defunct furniture warehouse, eventually his foundation did pay millions to get them stored as approved by NARA. They seized Trump's personal and privileged records, at this point he needs someone neutral to examine the records in order to get them back.

 

[Hank77]

There's plenty of other respectable opinions out there that point to the broad power of a sitting president to declassify material... if you'll let yourself see it?

Yes, they can declassify almost anything but not by just thinking about it.

 

[Valletta]

My money... the only documents Dems were concerned about finding were concerning them. If there were none, they'll make the most they can out of 'mishandling,' if there were, they will be filed with Hunter's laptop.

It could be records relating to the Hillary Clinton campaign colluding with the FBI.

 

[inquiring mind]

Apparently, you didn't understand the link you posted because it does NOT say that a sitting president can declassify by just 'thinking about it' because there are still procedures.

Although there aren’t specific protocols that the president must follow to declassify a document, federal courts have ruled that they will “refuse to recognize what they consider to be an inference of declassification,” McClanahan said.

The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals wrote in a 2020 decision about whether statements made by then-President Trump declassified the existence of a CIA program that “declassification, even by the president, must follow established procedures.”


However, that broad power does not include by mind control. To declassify a document, he has to actually declassify it.​

From the link:
"Current presidents can classify documents as long as they can “make a plausible argument that it is related to national security.” On the other hand, the president “doesn’t have to give any reason for declassifying” information, according to McClanahan.

“He can just say, ‘I decide that this should be declassified,’ and it’s declassified,” McClanahan said."
I don't know how he could be any more plain with his opinion.

 

[Hank77]

It could be records relating to the Hillary Clinton campaign colluding with the FBI.

If there are such records they don't belong to Trump. You know as well as I do that if Trump had found any such records he would have made them public by now. They would have been leaked to the media, you know that as well as I do.
I find it strange that you just keep posting, almost word for word, statements that have been clearly debunked. It's as if you are here just to keep an argument or a thread going in circles. Very strange.

 

[Yttrium]

From the link:
"Current presidents can classify documents as long as they can “make a plausible argument that it is related to national security.” On the other hand, the president “doesn’t have to give any reason for declassifying” information, according to McClanahan.

“He can just say, ‘I decide that this should be declassified,’ and it’s declassified,” McClanahan said."
I don't know how he could be any more plain with his opinion.

And then the declassification is recorded and the document is marked declassified.

If the declassification hasn't been recorded anywhere, then the president didn't declassify it.

 

[dqhall]

From the many leaks we've seen, the declassified material was probably safer at Mar-A-Lago than at the White House. Like every other accusation against him, this will come to naught... after the mid-term and presidential elections though.

Where are the documents that were in all the empty folders? We’re those ones Trump decided to destroy? Where they stolen? Good thing you are not in charge of security. Trump was not authorized to possess these. That is why he is trouble. He claimed executive privilege without being President.

 

[GreatLakes4Ever]

There are no criminal penalties for the Presidential Records Act. Remember Obama kept classified records in a defunct furniture warehouse, eventually his foundation did pay millions to get them stored as approved by NARA. They seized Trump's personal and privileged records, at this point he needs someone neutral to examine the records in order to get them back.

Trump has even better than a neutral person. He has his own hand-picked guy, the Special Master, is looking through those documents now. The classified documents are with the DOJ and the Special Master will take control of them as soon as Trump’s lawyers show that Trump did in fact declassify them. All the lawyers have to do is go into a place where you can get in trouble for lying and do that. Why haven’t they yet?

 

[SimplyMe]

There are no criminal penalties for the Presidential Records Act. Remember Obama kept classified records in a defunct furniture warehouse, eventually his foundation did pay millions to get them stored as approved by NARA. They seized Trump's personal and privileged records, at this point he needs someone neutral to examine the records in order to get them back.

We've gone over, in about a page ago, the falsehood of Obama keeping records. Yes, they are in a "defunct furniture warehouse" but they were sent there and are under the control of the National Archives (NARA), who packed the records from the White House. (Staff Edit) -- you've been shown and given multiple links that this is false.

As for no criminal penalties in the Presidential Records Act, you'll notice it wasn't one of the crimes listed in the Search Warrant for Mar-A-Lago.