Trump’s Lawyers Urge Congressional Involvement in Classified Documents Case

Trump’s Legal Team Asks House Intelligence Committee to Intervene in DOJ Investigation

Donald Trump’s legal team is taking action against the Department of Justice’s investigation into the former president’s retention of classified documents. In a letter dated April 26 (pdf) to committee Chairman Mike Turner (R-Ohio), Timothy C. Parlatore and other Trump attorneys wrote, “DOJ is not the appropriate agency to conduct investigations pertaining to the mishandling or spillage of classified material.” They are requesting that the intelligence community conduct an appropriate investigation and provide a full report to the committee and their counterparts in the Senate.

Trump’s legal team also sent the letter to the rest of Congress’s intelligence-focused Gang of Eight, which includes Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), among others.

NARA Allegations

The letter alleges that the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) “has become overtly political and declined to provide archival assistance to President Trump’s transition team.” The Epoch Times documented NARA’s politicization in a January investigation. The agency’s top lawyer, registered Democrat Gary Stern, would have been at the heart of legal decision-making in the Trump and Biden classified documents cases.

In their letter, Trump’s legal team claims to have discovered why classified documents ended up in boxes at Mar-a-Lago. “White House institutional practices for the handling of classified materials—including declassification procedures—are inconsistent with how the intelligence community and military handles classified materials. This is indicative of the staff’s packing processes and not any criminal intent by President Trump,” their letter reads.

Trump’s lawyers claim that the discovery of classified documents at the properties of former Vice President Mike Pence and President Joe Biden suggests that the fault lies with White House practices that stretch across administrations.

DOJ Involvement Questioned

Their letter questions the choice of sending the case to the DOJ, which, in turn, led to the execution of a search warrant at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. NARA, created in 1984 (pdf) as “an independent establishment in the executive branch,” made that referral.

“The matter should have been immediately referred to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) or your Committee,” Trump’s legal team wrote.