Vivek Ramaswamy seeks to reveal Merrick Garland’s communications through FOIA request.

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request against the Department of Justice and Attorney General Merrick Garland to obtain communications related to former President Donald Trump’s indictment.

“My campaign just filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) demand to uncover exactly what the White House communicated to Merrick Garland [and] Jack Smith about the unprecedented indictment of a former U.S. President & [Joe] Biden’s disfavored opponent in this election,”

The FOIA request comes ahead of Trump’s expected arraignment at a Miami courthouse on charges related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents. Ramaswamy specifically named Garland and special prosecutor Jack Smith, who brought the charges against Trump.

Ramaswamy, who is trailing far behind Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, also announced that if he is elected, he will pardon Trump if he’s convicted. “I’m running to win this election & it’d be easier for me if Trump were eliminated from running, but that is not the right answer for our nation. America First Always.”

FOIA Request Seeks Access to DOJ Records

The FOIA request seeks access to “any records” belonging to the DOJ, including electronic communications between the DOJ and non-government third-parties. Under a federal statute, federal agencies are mandated to respond to a FOIA request within 20 business days.

“If the captured media fails to do its job, real leaders in this country need to step up and do it instead,” Ramaswamy said.

Trump’s Indictment

Trump faces 37 counts related to the mishandling of classified documents, including 31 counts under an Espionage Act statute pertaining to the willful retention of national defense information. The charges also include counts of obstructing justice and making false statements, among other crimes.

According to the court papers, Trump is accused of keeping documents related to “nuclear weaponry in the United States” and the “nuclear capabilities of a foreign country,” along with documents from White House intelligence briefings, including some that detail the military capabilities of the U.S. and other countries.

Prosecutors allege Trump showed off the documents to people who did not have security clearances to review them and later tried to conceal documents from his own lawyers as they sought to comply with federal demands to find and return documents. Trump could face 20 years in prison, if convicted.

It came after a Trump representative told the National Archives in December 2021 that presidential records had been found at Mar-a-Lago. In January 2022, the National Archives retrieved 15 boxes of documents from Trump’s Florida home, later telling Justice Department officials that they contained “a lot” of classified material.

Neither the indictment itself nor a conviction would prevent Trump from running for office again.