Or maybe the better question is: Why has Trump been so determined to keep secret documents? The Calendar shows the resistance.
- Jan. 20, 2021: National Archives & Records Administration (NARA) requires all official records sent to NARA. WH Counsel identifies boxes to go to NARA. Boxes are sent to Mar-a-Lago.
- May 6, 2021: NARA writes Trump attorneys asking return of missing records.
- Sep. 2021: Archive officials engage with attorneys (again).
- Dec. 2021: Trump attorney informs Archives documents have been found.
- Jan. 17, 2022: Archives contractor retrieves 15 boxes from Mar-a-Lago.
- Jan. 18, 2022: Boxes delivered; Archives open boxes to find classified documents.
- Feb., March, April, May, June, July, August: Trump’s lawyer team denies and denies return of the many still-missing documents.
- August 8th: FBI agents in plain clothes and no weapons but armed with a signed warrant enter and search Mar-a-Lago. They find “more than 100 documents marked classified, from the confidential to top secret level”, located in drawers of Trump’s desk, in his office, and in a storage closet.
Rosalind S. Helderman documents the full timeline: Trump and the Mar-a-Lago documents: A timeline
- Aug.8, 2022 — 19 months later: FBI uses judge-approved warrant to retrieve documents at Mar-a-Lago