Federal prosecutors have reactivated their case against Donald Trump over classified documents he took to Mar-a-Lago when he left the White House. They include information about U.S. nuclear capabilities and U.S. military plans to attack enemy countries.
Special counsel Jack Smith is asking an Atlanta appeals court to overturn a decision by Judge Aileen Cannon, who dismissed the lawsuit because she said Smith was illegally appointed to the post. The decision by Cannon, who was appointed by Trump despite a poor track record, stunned legal experts. It ran counter to every court ruling on the appointment of special counsel since the Watergate scandal.
Let’s recall the facts. A first in the history of the United States. A former president faces 37 criminal charges for illegally possessing hundreds of secret documents at his Florida residence, some with the highest security classifications. Trump is accused of making false statements, of trying to conceal these documents in order to keep them from the FBI and of conspiracy to obstruct justice.
What is troubling for us is that among these top-secret documents are some related to the “Five Eyes” network, the global electronic spy network that includes the United States, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Some of our secrets have therefore been compromised along with those of the other members of the network.
Mar-a-Lago: The Spy Fair
Why did Trump hoard these secret documents in the White House for four years and why did he take them with him?
This is because the despicable and extremely dangerous character wanted to be able to use them to take revenge on his detractors and/or make a lot of money by selling them to the highest bidder.
Some of the most important and dangerous secrets in the United States — and some in Canada — lay in cardboard boxes stacked in a bathroom or on the stage of a ballroom where cocktail parties and dinners were regularly held.
There is no doubt that Mar-a-Lago was a magnet for spies and was very easy to gain access to. Intelligence services from China, Russia, Iran and Cuba probably tried to infiltrate it.
A Chinese woman was arrested there with four smartphones, a laptop and a USB drive containing malware. She was convicted of making false statements to a federal officer and deported to China in 2021.
A Russian-speaking Ukrainian woman living in Montreal was able to mingle with Trump’s family at Mar-a-Lago, posing as an heiress to the Rothschild banking dynasty. She was even photographed with him on a golf green. It was never revealed how the investigations into her on both sides of the border ended. Nothing on the web.
Not for tomorrow the day before
What will happen to special counsel Jack Smith’s request? The legal battle is likely to drag on well after the election. If Trump wins, he will have the power to fire Smith and order the Justice Department to drop the appeal. If he loses, he will most likely be back in court… until legal wrangling by his lawyers sends the case to the Supreme Court, which is dominated by pro-Trump justices.
