Donald Trump has become the first U.S. president, former or otherwise, to be indicted on federal criminal charges.
Trump's announcement of his federal indictment suggested he was the victim of disparate treatment by the government toward him and Biden, since they are both being investigated for allegedly mishandling classified documents.
But there are key differences between the two investigations. Biden's aides say they immediately turned the materials over to the government after their discovery. In Trump's case, federal agents issued a subpoena for classified records and then searched Mar-a-Lago, seizing more than 100 documents with classified markings and revealing they were investigating possible obstruction.into classified documents found at the home of former Vice President Mike Pence, another presidential candidate. The DOJ decided not to file charges.Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks to supporters as he formally announces his intention to seek the Republican nomination for president on June 07, 2023 in Ankeny, Iowa.Mike Pence, who was Donald Trump's vice president, urged the Justice Department to unseal the indictment against his former boss immediately.conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Friday. "The American people have a right to know of the basis for both the facts and the law underpinning the unprecedented indictment of a former president of the United States under federal law." Pence also urged Attorney General Merrick Garland to explain the case to the country. "I think at very minimum, the attorney general of the United States should appear before the American people, lay out all the facts that they know, all the relevant law in this case, and answer questions until every question is answered," he said. The former vice president has testified before a grand jury in Washington pertaining to special counsel Jack Smith's probes of Trump's attempt to hold on to power after he lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden.for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination earlier this week. He joins a field that's currently led by Trump, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a distant second, according to polls.Trump said on tape he didn't declassify 'secret' info that he shared, CNN reports U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the Grand Foyer of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020.Trump acknowledged that he had not declassified "secret" military information that he kept after leaving the presidency, according to a transcript of a 2021 audio recording reported Friday morning"As president, I could have declassified, but now I can't," the transcript shows Trump saying during a 2021 meeting at his Bedminster, New Jersey, resort, according to CNN. "Secret. This is secret information. Look, look at this," Trump said at one point, CNN reported. "This was done by the military and given to me." He made these remarks as he complained about Gen. Mark Milley, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during Trump's final days in office.that prosecutors in the Trump documents probe had obtained the audio of that meeting, in which Trump indicated he had kept a classified record related to Iran. Details of the transcript had not been made public until Friday.A police car is parked outside the Mar-a-Lago Club, home of former US President Donald Trump, on April 3, 2023 in Palm Beach, Florida.Trump's federal criminal case is under seal in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, and could remain so until closer to his arraignment next week. When it wasn't crashing due to likely overwhelming traffic, the government court website PACER showed a number of sealed cases filed in Thursday's criminal cases report. Those cases include a case number and filing date, but no additional publicly accessible information.Trump faces seven criminal charges, and he could face more than one criminal count for each charge, though multiple news outlets have reported that he faces seven counts, as well. The former president said he is scheduled to appear in federal court in Miami on Tuesday afternoon. He had stashed boxes of White House documents, classified and otherwise, at his private South Florida club Mar-a-Lago.In 2016, Trump said he'd 'enforce all laws concerning the protection of classified information' Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump addresses supporters during a campaign rally at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, N.C., on Thursday, Aug. 18, 2016.When he was the Republican presidential nominee in 2016, Donald Trump vowed, "In my administration, I'm going to enforce all laws concerning the protection of classified information." "No one will be above the law," Trump continued in his speech at an Aug. 16, 2016, campaign rally in Charlotte, North Carolina. A video of Trump's ironically prophetic promise was tweeted by Howard Mortman, communications director for C-Span, the morning after Trump was indicted for multiple crimes related to his retention of classified documents after he left office.Trump during the 2016 campaign had repeatedly accused his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, of misconduct for using a private email server as secretary of State, which led to classified information ending up in that server. "She set up this illegal server knowing full well that her actions put our national security at risk and put the safety and security of your children and your families at risk," Trump told supporters in Arizona at an Oct. 29, 2016, campaign event.James Trusty, attorney for Donald Trump, appears on "Meet the Press" in Washington, D.C. Sunday, April 9, 2023.Donald Trump's legal team thinks this is the only indictment the former president is facing from special counsel Jack Smith, one of Trump's attorneys"We think that's the only indictment we're facing," said lawyer James Trusty when he was asked whether he believes Trump will also be charged in Washington, D.C., federal court. Smith is also investigating Trump in a separate criminal case regarding his efforts to cling to power after he lost to Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Trusty also told "TODAY" that he and his fellow Trump lawyers found out about the Miami federal grand jury "fairly recently." The classified documents case is apparently venued in South Florida since Trump had kept boxes of records at his Mar-a-Lago club.Media tents have been set up outside the Federal Courthouse in Miami as a grand jury gathers evidence related to the possible mishandling of classified documents by former President Donald Trump, on Thursday, June 8, 2023.Media outlets had already started swarming the federal courthouse in Miami after it became evident in recent days that special counsel Jack Smith had a grand jury there. It's going to get even crazier, however, with Trump ordered to appear for his arraignment at 3 p.m. ET Tuesday.U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks to reporters after a jury convicted four members of the far-right Proud Boys militia group including its former leader Enrique Tarrio of seditious conspiracy, in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, as Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco stands by during a brief news conference at the Justice Department in Washington, May 4, 2023.Attorney General Merrick Garland didn't approve or sign off on the charges special counsel Jack Smith brought against former President Donald Trump, according to NBC News reporting. Both he and Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco have received regular briefings on the case. But under Justice Department rules, Garland only could have blocked "unwarranted" or "inappropriate" moves by Smith.House Dems say Trump will have his day in court: 'No man is above the law' Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said Trump put U.S. national security in "grave danger" by pursuing "yet another lawless personal agenda," in a statement Thursday. WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 05: House Oversight and Accountability Ranking Member Jamie Raskin speaks to reporters after attending an FBI briefing in the House Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility at the U.S. Capitol Building on June 05, 2023 in Washington, DC.Raskin, the ranking member of the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, urged Republicans to respect the outcome of the special counsel's "comprehensive investigation." "We must ensure that federal officials preserve our country's records in a way that is consistent with law and that safeguards our national interests," said Raskin, who was on the House's Jan. 6 commission.said in a tweet"He will have his day in court, in Miami and Manhattan and Atlanta too if it comes to it," he said. said, "The rule of law is central to the integrity of our democracy. It must be applied without fear or favor. To everyone."White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows follows President Donald J. Trump as he walks to board Marine One and depart from the South Lawn of the White House on Friday, July 10, 2020 in Washington, DC.Mark Meadows, Donald Trump's last chief of staff in the White House, has been quiet for months, prompting speculation about his potential involvement with the special counsel's probe. There's been no confirmation yet about that, but a key piece of evidence in the classified documents investigation has emerged in recent weeks. NBC News previously reported that special counsel Jack Smith had obtained an audio recording of Trump in July 2021 discussing a classified military planning document. On the tape, the former president acknowledged that the document was classified, which would run against his argument that he had declassified the documents he kept when he left the White House. had been made during a meeting in Bedminster, New Jersey, between Trump and people who were helping Meadows write his memoir, NBC reported.Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks to supporters as he formally announces his intention to seek the Republican nomination for president on June 07, 2023 in Ankeny, Iowa.Former Vice President Mike Pence was slated to appear on the Fox News show "Hannity" on Thursday night to talk about his recently announced candidacy for president.Because of that, Pence's and Sean Hannity's respective teams decided to reschedule, NBC News reported, citing a person familiar with the matter.The section of the government court website where Trump's indictment will likely be posted has crashed. The website PACER, short for Public Access to Court Electronic Records, allows users to search for records and docket information from federal district, appellate and bankruptcy court cases. The page for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida has been unable to load since shortly after Trump announced his federal indictment.
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