Trump deliberately and repeatedly obstructed the retrieval of classified documents for close to 2 years. Any news headlines or GOP complaints to the contrary are purposely disingenuous.
January 2021: Trump reluctantly departs the White House, shaking his tiny fists in defiance.
May 2021: National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) recognized a large number of classified documents are missing from the Presidential record and e-mails Trump’s lawyers to return 24 boxes of original records.
June 2021: NARA again instructs Trump’s team to return missing documents.
December 2021: apparently they had a difficult time figuring out in which bathroom or ballroom the documents were insecurely stored, because Trump’s team finally responded to NARA that they had found “some” documents.
January 2022: NARA retrieves 15 boxes of documents that should have been turned over when Trump exited the White House, and when NARA twice requested them over the course the previous year. Those 15 boxes contain classified security information up to the level of Top Secret. NARA sought permission to alert the FBI of the crime.
February 2022: NARA issues a rare public statement saying that they are still searching for more of Trump’s records.
February 2022: NARA sends a criminal referral to the Department of Justice (DOJ). House of Representatives Oversight Committee announces an investigation into trump’s mishandling of documents.
April 2022: DOJ initiates a criminal investigation and the grand jury process. The grand jury’s purpose is to hear evidence and then determine if the case against Trump is strong enough to warrant an indictment, and indication that conviction is a likely outcome of the case.
May 2022: Trump’s legal team seeks to delay disclosure to the FBI. This request is rejected and the FBI is permitted to access the records as soon as May 12.
May 2022: Subpoena is issued to retrieve documents marked Classified. Trump’s custodian of records is ordered to appear before a federal grand jury in Washington, and is instructed to return “any responsive documents.”
June 2022: a Trump team member asserts that a “diligent search” was conducted and “any and all responsive documents” were returned.
June 2022: multiple Trump employees are recorded on video camera moving boxes between Trump residences on multiple days. Investigators consider this timing suspicious and potentially indicative of obstruction. Sources claim that Trump and his aides conducted a “dress rehearsal” for moving sensitive papers even before receiving the subpoena.
June 2022: subpoena is issued for surveillance footage from Mar-a-Lago.
July 2022: probable cause is obtained for a search warrant.
August 2022: search warrant is issued and federal agents execute the warrant on August 8. They uncover 13 more boxes with documents marked classified, which is more than double what was voluntarily returned in response to the May subpoena.
August 2022: Trump states that all records were declassified and placed in secure storage. And so begins Trump’s evolving and weak defenses of his mishandling. His evolving defense is a timeline in itself and you can amuse yourself with it here.
August 2022: Trump is well known for his stall tactics, so he asks the U.S. District Court for a special master to review the documents.
September 2022: Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee widely considered to be completely unqualified for office, grants Trump’s request for a special master and orders a stop on the investigation.
September 2022: The FBI reveals that they recover more than 11,000 government documents and photographs during their search of Mar-a-Lago.
September 2022: Special Master Judge Dearie questioned the authority of Aileen Cannon and demands to see evidence of Trump’s allegations, including proof of the FBI planting evidence.
September 2022: 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Justice Department and forced Cannon to reverse her decision on stopping the investigation and ended the Special Master review of the documents, thoroughly smacking down Cannon’s legal reasoning in the process.
December 2022: even more classified documents are found at another Trump residence.
May 2023: special prosecutor Jack Smith is now looking at Trump’s financial dealings during that time, especially with foreign entities.
