Hot off the press from NEWSWEEK this story headline that shows the ignorance and insanity of Judge
Aileen Cannon in the Mar-a-Lago Trump classified documents case:
“Judge Aileen Cannon Orders
Classified Documents Evidence to be Made Public”
The grand jury
testimony of Trump’s former valet (Walt Nauta) is to be made public under
an order by Judge Aileen Cannon, after months of arguing over its release.
Both Trump and Nauta had wanted the testimony released, in
opposition to prosecutor, but S/C Jack Smith fears an un-redacted version
would identify witnesses in the Florida classified documents case when he previously
told Cannon he did not want potential witnesses to be intimidated.
Background of this most-serious charge against Trump: Trump faces 40 federal charges over his mishandling of sensitive classified materials at the top classified levels that were retrieved from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, FL after he left the White House in January 2021.
He stands accused of obstructing efforts by federal authorities to return them.
Trump has pleaded
not guilty to all charges.
Trump valiet, Walt Nauta, and Carlos De Oliveira, a Mar-a-Lago maintenance worker, are also
accused of moving boxes of sensitive materials around Trump's home
to prevent FBI agents from finding them, and for conspiring to delete security
footage that had been sought under a subpoena.
Nauta and De Oliveira also have pleaded not guilty to all federal charges against them, including conspiracy to obstruct justice.
To date, NEWSWEEK has contacted the attorneys of Trump, Nauta, and De Oliveira via
email for comment (none received to date).
Also Note: Media organizations had sided in court with Trump and
Nauta in seeking the release of the un-redacted grand jury testimony.
That too is an insane idea
for one simple reason: It effects the highest level of National Security.
A grand jury comprises members of the public who are asked to decide if charges should be brought in a case.
According to Cornell Law
School's Legal Information Institute: “A grand jury witness is asked to appear
before the grand jury, since they may have some information or knowledge about
a matter under consideration by the grand jury. The grand jury inquiries are
conducted in secret so only the witness, attorneys, an interpreter when needed,
and a court reporter to transcribe the testimony, will be involved in the
procedure.”
It wasn't until the FBI raided
Mar-a-Lago on August 8, 2022, that 11,000 more presidential records that Trump
had allegedly not declared were recovered.
According to a prosecution
documents filed in court in September, 2022, the FBI raid uncovered: (1) 18 Top
Secret (SCI) documents; (2) 54 Secret documents; (3) 31 marked Confidential,
and (4) 11,179 government documents, or photographs that were without
classification markings.
After months of wrangling, Cannon ordered the public release
of Nauta's testimony, with redactions to hide the names of FBI agents and
others who are likely to testify. However, it will not hide the names of
non-witnesses.
Cannon refused a recent attempt by Nauta's lawyers to file the grand jury testimony because the redactions were not complete.
Then on April
28, Cannon ordered that Nauta: “Shall publicly file the transcript of his grand
jury testimony taken on June 21, 2022, with limited redactions. Defendant Nauta
filed an un-redacted version of the transcript … but this failed to comply with
the court's instructions.”
Then Cannon released a redacted version of the FBI's questioning of Nauta on April 11, which came after months of legal argument about what material should be redacted or not.
That transcript shows what Nauta told FBI agents that the National
Archive (NARA) sent a huge truck to pick up the large amount of presidential
papers that Trump had stored at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
The truck arrived on January 17, 2022 and was so large that it couldn't fit through Mar-a-Lago's gates and had to wait outside.
In the end, Trump allowed only 15 boxes to be placed on the truck. Nauta and another unnamed employee then took the documents from Pine Hall, an entry room to the Trump family suite, and loaded them in a car.
They
then drove the car to the truck waiting outside Mar-a-Lago. Nauta made that disclosure in his interview with the FBI in May, 2022.
That interview has now been made public by Judge Cannon after
she agreed with prosecutors that the names of the FBI agents should be redacted
from the interview transcript.
My 2 Cents: Judge Cannon in my professional view is in way over her head.
FYI: I held a Secret clearance for 9 years (1961-1970) and then that was upgraded to
Top Secret (SCI) highest of all classifications in 1970. I held that classification clearance for
some 54 years while on active duty in the Marine Corps intelligence field and later as a DOD civilian
in the U.S. Air Force Intelligence Service, both on a worldwide basis.
I know how critically important and sensitive T/S (SCI) documents are with that highest of classification, and how closely guarded those documents are held by those with clearance and access to see and handle them.
My concern since this exposure came to light is and has remained the same on these three points: (1) What do any missing documents contain; (2) Where are any missing documents now; and (3) Who possibly unlawfully has seen them, and now unlawfully possesses them?
It is
plain for me to see that Judge Cannon could care less as long she can delay the
court date for Trump so that he can stall and possibly escape a fair trial and justice.
Right now I hope that S/C Jack Smith has or will ask the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, who oversees Judges like Cannon to please yank her off this case so a hard date for a trial can proceed.
As I said up front, Judge Cannon is in way over her head and she is a real danger to this case of highly classified documents involved, and to our national security.
The B/L: No one is above the law and especially not Donald J. Trump and especially not in this case.
Thanks for stopping by.
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