Was Trump Attempting to Monetize Top Secret Documents?

Did he photocopy documents and retain them when FBI took Originals?

We know now that Trump took Top Secret and classified documents from the White House to his Mar-a-Lago residence club. We also have learned that the FBI seized those documents pursuant to a judicially authorized search warrant.

But what we do not yet know is why Trump took those documents from the White House and why he resisted returning them to the National Archives. We do not know if he had some of those Top Secret and classified documents photocopied, and if so, where did he put those photocopies.

But the biggest question we have is why did Trump, a man not known to be a reader who even refused to read the Presidents Daily Briefing completely and insisted on only receiving the Cliff Notes version for easy digestion, why did Trump take the Top Secret and classified documents to Mar-a-Lago? Trump met in June, 2022 with the head of the Counterintelligence unit of the Justice Department, who personally came to Mar-a-Lago to see what was retained by Trump and whether he could get Trump to release those documents so they could be delivered to the National Archives where they belonged. But Trump apparently resisted the efforts of the Counterintelligence division head to obtain the Top Secret and other classified documents that Trump kept in an unlocked storage area. But Trump did accede to one request of the Counterintelligence chief: he put a padlock on the Mar-a-Lago Top Secret storage room.

Now when the US Counterintelligence chief requests that you turn over to him Top Secret documents that you kept in your unsecured storage area, most right-thinking people would say yes sir, I will certainly give you those Top Secret and other classified documents that I took from the White House, and I am sorry to have caused you some difficulty.

But that was not Trump’s answer, rather he agreed to a padlock on the storage area and nothing else. So, the Counterintelligence chief had no other option but to sign the application for a search warrant which was approved by a US Magistrate Judge— I’ll not name him here since Trump supporters have been sending frequent death threats to the Magistrate Judge causing the court officials to remove the Magistrate Judge’s photograph from the Court’s website. These Trump supporters are acting like the attempted assassin of Salaman Rushdie executing on the fatwah issued by the Ayatollah in Iran. Did Trump call on his supporters to stop the death threats of the Magistrate Judge, no of course not, rather Trump has acted like he did on January 6, 2021 and did nothing.

So, the FBI executed the court approved search warrant and seized a reported 14 boxes of Top Secret and other classified documents, and one news report said it totaled 45 boxes. Trump claimed the FBI seized his three passports, but on August 15, 2021, the Justice Department said it did not have Trump’s passport. Actually, since Trump has been talking about his airplane which he recently had refurbished the Justice Department might be legitimately concerned that Trump might be a flight risk and have just cause to seize Trump’s passport though that is usually done at the time of criminal arraignment and not before. But Trump has had people confirm that if he went to Russia or Saudi Arabia, two countries that do not have an extradition treaty with the US, he could remain in either and evade US or Georgia or New York prosecution. A Twitter poster noted that actually it could be easier for Trump to evade prosecution as both Russia and Saudi Arabia have a diplomatic facility a few blocks from Trump Tower in NYC: freedom for Trump could be only a short walk down the street, but from current photographs, Trump might not be able to walk that far though he would certainly opt for a limousine ride to freedom.

But that takes us back to that highly important question: why did Trump take Top Secret and other classified documents to Mar-a-Lago, and why did he resist the Counterintelligence chief’s request in June, 2022 to give him the documents so he could return them to the National Archives where they belong. The answer, as Bob Dylan would say, is Blowing in the Wind. Now this is pure speculation, but it is based on Trump’s continued efforts to monetize the presidency and the post-presidency, as has been well documented. And in light of the numerous advancing criminal investigations, Trump might feel that he is already being potentially charged with numerous crimes, so adding a few new ones won’t make much difference.

Again this is pure speculation, but the only explanation that fits Trump’s behavior is that he has or intends to sell the Top Secret and other classified documents to various foreign buyers like the Russians, the Saudis, the Chinese, the North Koreans or any other country or other foreign individuals who would like to own US Top Secret documents.

And why did Trump resist the Counterintelligence chief’s request to turn over the documents in June, 2022, possibly so Trump could have the Top Secret and other classified documents photocopied before the originals were seized by the FBI pursuant to the search warrant. Since this is a possibility, Trump may have stored photocopies or some originals at his golf club in West Palm Beach or at his Doral Golf Club in Miami. The Justice Department should amend their application for a search warrant to include both of these nearby Florida golf clubs. Afterall, as Trump recently buried his first wife Ivana, who had accused him of rape, with the connivance of both of their children, near the first tee at his Bedminster, NJ golf club, Trump may have thought the other golf clubs are better hiding places than Mar-a-Lago.

Some have even speculated that the $2 billion investment Jared Kushner got from MBS, his Saudi buddy, may have been payment for Top Secret or other classified documents or photocopies of those documents that Trump already delivered to them.

Trump’s resistance to turning over the documents to the Counterintelligence chief may have been solely to give time for Trump to photocopy the Top Secret and other documents. Of course, this is also just speculation.

If someone has a better explanation, I would love to hear it. But merely framing them to hang on the walls of Mar-a-Lago, Trump Tower and Bedminster does not have the same power and believability as the foreign buyer sales of US Top Secret documents.

Clearly DOJ and FBI need to expand their search warrant to include these other Trump hiding places.

For now we will have to wait for further developments on the legal fronts.