I have no idea why someone from Team Trump would voluntarily show this to the public. It not only bolsters damaging reporting about the Mar-a-Lago scandal, it also makes the former president look worse, not better.
Indeed, the NARA letter confirms that Trump took highly classified national security materials to his glorified country club. It confirms that the Republican’s haul was extensive and wasn’t limited to a handful of documents. It confirms that the National Archives was amazingly accommodating, accepting multiple delays in the hopes that the former president would eventually cooperate and return the secrets he wasn’t supposed to have.
This is just an attempt at saving face.
ReplyDeleteI'll explain why this revelation helps Donald Trump.
Many books are hundreds of pages long. So what we're talking about is the equivalent of a "book."
One can assume that only a part of the 700 pages is truly sensitive enough to justify as saying that were it to fall into the wrong hands that it would damage national security. And if indeed such documents were taken from the White House and negligently stored at Mar-a-Lago, then a crime may have been committed. Perhaps Donald Trump is guilty of a crime.
But, you know, Donald Trump was President for four complete years. He was given extensive briefings on the absolutely most sensitive national security matters pretty much from day one, and on a daily -- night and day -- basis.
Donald Trump was constantly being asked to make decisions based on his knowledge of these super-secret matters he was thoroughly knowledgeable of.
So even short of any 700 sheets of paper, Donald Trump could sit down and write hundreds of pages from memory of the most potentially damaging material to U.S. national security interests.
So, it's absurd to think that without these 700 pages at Mar-a-Lago that the country would be anything more than incrementally safer.
There are no allegations from the Department of Justice so far that Donald Trump intended to leak secrets from those pages. No indication that he inadvertently leaked secrets. Certainly no allegations he gave those secrets to a hostile country. No indication those secrets were copied by agents of a hostile power.
At most, Donal Trump technically violated the law. And if he is charged and found guilty, or pleads guilty, then that will be that.
But nothing catastrophic is being discussed here. It's something, but it's not much. It actually makes Donald Trump seem pretty good in comparison to the out-of-control wild monster some seem to try to make him out to be.
Torah thought this week’s parsha ראה
ReplyDelete“Give it to him readily and have no regrets when you do so, for in return כִּי בִּגְלַל הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה the Lord your God will bless you in all your efforts and in all your undertakings.” (Deuteronomy 15:10).
דברים פרשת ראה פרק טו פסוק י
נָתוֹן תִּתֵּן לוֹ וְלֹא יֵרַע לְבָבְךָ בְּתִתְּךָ לוֹ כִּי בִּגְלַל הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה יְבָרֶכְךָ יְקֹוָק אֱלֹהֶיךָ בְּכָל מַעֲשֶׂךָ וּבְכֹל מִשְׁלַח יָדֶךָ:
Shabbath 151b
“It was taught, R. Eleazar ha-Kappar said: Let one always pray to be spared this fate [poverty], for if he does not descend [to poverty] his son will, and if not his son, his grandson, for it is said, because that for [bi-gelal] this thing, [etc.]. The School of R. Ishmael taught: It is a wheel [galal] that revolves in the world [Coming to all people or their descendants; Gelal is thus connected with galgal.]. R. Joseph said: We hold [as tradition] that a Rabbinical student will not suffer poverty. But we see that he does suffer poverty? Even if he suffers poverty, he [nevertheless] does not engage in begging [ lit., going about the doors (of houses)]. R. Hiyya said to his wife: When a poor man comes, be quick to offer him bread, so that others may be quick to offer it to your children. You curse them! she exclaimed. A verse is written, he replied: because that for [bi-gelal] this thing, whereon the School of R. Ishmael taught: It is a wheel that revolves in the world.”
Beautiful.
רש"י דברים פרשת ראה פרק טו פסוק י
נתון תתן לו - אפילו מאה פעמים:
לו - בינו ובינך:
כי בגלל הדבר - אפילו אמרת ליתן, אתה נוטל שכר האמירה עם שכר המעשה:
The Torah promises big rewards for giving generously and often and with good will.
Bravo Joe Orlow: “At most, Donald Trump technically violated the law” Yes no one is above the law. I fought against the IRS in USA Tax Court (case 481-15S) and won. I’m still fighting for my pension. My ex-wife whom I divorced on her application 2/17/1993 has been getting 55% since early 1994 with no end in sight.