On Monday, August 8th, the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) conducted a search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. The search came as a surprise to Trump and his family. According to the President’s son Eric, “The purpose of the raid was […] the National Archives wanted to corroborate whether or not Donald Trump had any documents in his possession.”
It seems that the FBI search is connected to 15 boxes containing national security information that were found at the estate earlier this year. The former President is up in arms:
“Such an assault could only take place in broken, Third-World Countries. Sadly, America has now become one of those Countries, corrupt at a level not seen before. They even broke into my safe!”
The FBI raiding the home of a high-ranking politician – let alone a former President – is unprecedented. The search would have required a federal judge to sign off on it, meaning the FBI had to have demonstrated that there was probably cause that a crime had been committed in relation to the documents. People Magazine outlined the many steps needed to acquire such a warrant in this article.
Senate and House Republicans have criticized the raid, calling it an overreach by the Department of Justice. Exactly how the raid may affect future investigation (or even indictment) of former President Trump is yet to be seen.