A previously unseen Department of Defense memo from the Obama administration has ignited a fierce discussion concerning the legitimacy of the 2022 raid on former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence. This incriminating piece of evidence, obtained exclusively by Fox News Digital and released by America First Legal (AFL), a staunch conservative legal group, suggests that the federal government may have already possessed original copies of the documents seized at Mar-a-Lago.
The contentious memo, titled “Memorandum of Understanding Entered into by Presidential Information Technology Community Entities,” dates back to 2015. It was drafted as a response to a 2014 Russian breach of the Executive Office of the President’s network, leading then-President Barack Obama to establish the Presidential Information Technology Community (PITC). This entity includes representatives from federal agencies such as the Department of Defense and Homeland Security and stipulates that information received through its network is under presidential control.
Although the executive action establishing PITC was made public, AFL claims possession of another memo confirming that the Department of Defense managed information systems used by the President, Vice President, and Executive Office. This revelation raises serious questions about whether all documents from Trump’s tenure were stored by the federal government.
Dan Epstein, Vice President of America First Legal, expressed his outrage saying: “What America First Legal has uncovered after months of investigative work paints an unfortunate picture of Washington’s disregard for rule law. A former President was subjected to an unjustified FBI raid spurred by a politically motivated referral from the Biden White House.”
The Department of Defense has not commented on the memo, while the White House and Department of Justice have not yet responded to inquiries from Fox News Digital. The FBI seized 33 boxes of documents from Mar-a-Lago in August 2022, leading to a legal battle and Trump being charged with 40 felony counts, including alleged violations of the Espionage Act and obstruction of justice.
Trump has fervently denied these charges, branding the investigation as an “Election Interference Scam” orchestrated by the Biden administration and Special Counsel Jack Smith. While this memo does not absolve Trump, it casts significant doubts on the validity of the raid by suggesting that the government may have already had access to these documents.
Further complicating matters, Presiding Judge Aileen Cannon recently unredacted over 300 pages of evidence revealing communications between the Biden administration and National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) regarding Trump’s documents. These exchanges began shortly after Trump left office in 2021, with NARA voicing concerns about how Presidential records were managed.
This controversy has triggered broader investigations into how classified documents were handled by current President Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence. In a clear demonstration of double standards, Special Counsel Robert Hur recently decided not to recommend criminal charges against Biden, citing his age and perceived cognitive state as factors that could influence a jury’s decision.
The exposure of this Obama-era Department of Defense memo adds another layer to an already contentious issue. It highlights deep-rooted concerns about federal government actions leading up to the Mar-a-Lago raid. As legal disputes continue, it raises further questions about how high-profile political figures are treated and justice is applied in America.
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