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Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, a Republican reportedly days away from launching a campaign for president, was called a “swamp monster” by an irate Donald Trump supporter outside the courthouse where the former president is set to be arraigned on federal charges today. Mr Suarez, 45, has been critical of Mr Trump in the past and reportedly did not vote for him for president in 2020. That presumably did not endear him to supporters of the former president, who has pleaded not guilty to a plethora of charges regarding his handling of classified documents after leaving the presidency and alleged attempts to impede the government’s attempts to get the documents back. “We’ve got a Deep State corrupt mayor!” a Trump supporter screamed at Mr Suarez as he made his way towards the courthouse on Tuesday afternoon. “We’ve got a Deep State swamp monster! We’ve got a swamp monster folks! We’ve got a big swamp monster! Swamp’s getting rounded up, baby! Time’s coming, baby! The swamp’s getting taken down, and you’re getting taken down, brother.” The indictment of Mr Trump over his handling of classified documents has once again inflamed the passions of his most ardent supporters, who are arguing that the prosecution of the former president amounts to a political witch-hunt against him as he campaigns to reclaim the White House next year. That is not, however, a view shared by everyone who served with him in his first presidential administration. William Barr, the former attorney general, called the notion that Mr Trump is a victim in the situation “ridiculous,” and Mike Pompeo, the former Secretary of State, said that, if the allegations against the former president are true, his behaviour was “wrong.” Mr Trump is the first former president ever charged with federal crimes — with his indictment in Florida coming just months after his indictment in New York for his alleged role in a hush money payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels. Mr Suarez has no connection to the case, except that it is playing out in the town where he is mayor. The timing, however, is interesting: Mr Suarez suggested to a reporter on Tuesday morning that he will formally kick off his bid for the White House with a speech on Thursday. When Mr Suarez enters the race, his most formidable opponent will be Mr Trump. He will also have to contend with the presence of his state’s governor Ron DeSantis, who has staunchly defended Mr Trump in the documents case even as Mr Trump has repeatedly attacked him since the beginning of the year. Read More Trump indictment - live: Trump greets fans with free food after arrest, not guilty plea at Miami arraignment Trump has jubilant supporters pray over him and sing him ‘Happy Birthday’ after arrest

After he was indicted for the second time in three months, former president Donald Trump stoked fears of possible violence by urging his supporters to show up at the Miami federal courthouse where he made his first appearance on Tuesday. Judging from the turnout, most of his supporters didn’t seem to be listening. More than two years ago, the twice-impeached, now twice-indicted ex-president summoned a riotous mob of supporters to Washington, DC, many of whom assaulted police officers and sacked the US Capitol in hopes of preventing Congress from certifying his loss to President Joe Biden. That day, Mr Trump spoke to a crowd of tens of thousands who’d gathered near the White House to hear him denounce the electoral process that had, four years earlier, made him the leader of the free world. Now, with the former president facing state criminal charges in his former home state of New York and federal charges in his adopted home state of Florida, his ability to manifest a violent mob appears to have been attenuated since his exit from the White House. To be sure, law enforcement officials in Miami appeared to have made preparations for the possibility that protesters could show up en masse on Tuesday. On Monday, Miami mayor Francis Suarez told reporters that there would be plans in place to “make sure that everyone has a right to peacefully express themselves and exercise their constitutional rights” in “an obviously peaceful manner” and said he hoped anyone who showed up to protest “would be peaceful”. City officials had reportedly prepared for as many as 50,000 protesters to pack the area surrounding the downtown courthouse. But in the end, the number of Trump superfans who came to support the ex-president looked to be only a few hundred. The paltry crowd didn’t appear to be organized in any manner, though they did disrupt proceedings outside the building by blocking traffic at times. One anti-Trump protester, a man called Domenic Santana, even went to far as to temporarily block Mr Trump’s motorcade as the ex-president attempted to leave after court proceedings. Mr Santana, who had been walking around the building clad in an old-time prisoner costume while carrying a sign that read “Lock Him Up,” spoke to The Independent earlier in the day about his reasons for coming to the courthouse. “Hopefully, someday he has to be locked up. He should have been locked up a long, long time ago. He’s gotten away with it. He’s the master of spin, either graduate from New York School of Rats and he has a master’s degree and he knows how to spin it. He’s going to spin it on this one. ‘It’s political. It’s because I’m running for president that they’re accusing me,’” he said. “He has his case made up. He doesn’t need lawyers to defend him. He already knows the spin. Before the election, ‘Oh, if I lose it’s because of fraud’. That day he lost – ‘Oh, fraud, fraud fraud’. His Attorney General – ‘There was no fraud’. ‘You’re fired,’ the next day. Come on. Enough is enough,” Mr Santana added. The ersatz prisoner was one of a few colourful characters who spent the day wandering around the massive courthouse and adjacent buildings, either in support or in opposition to the man who was arraigned there on Tuesday. One pro-Trump performer, a man who identified himself only as “Uncle Jams,” rolled about the courthouse plaza on a hoverboard while singing pro-Trump and anti-Biden ditties. Another group of well-known Trump supporters, members of the “Blacks for Trump” group, arrived on the scene early in the morning, led by founder and Miami native Maurice Woodside, also known as Michael the Black Man. Mr Woodside, who gained some measure of notoriety during Mr Trump’s rise to the presidency due to his constant presence at the ex-president’s campaign rallies, led a group of maybe 30 people in identical “Blacks for Trump” shirts, who walked around together and intermittently chanted the ex-president’s name. At times, the scene outside the courthouse took on a circus atmosphere, with pro-Trump protesters mingling among scores of tents belonging to news organisations, who’d sent correspondents from all over the world to cover the spectacle of the ex-president’s court appearance. There was, however, one more ominous moment earlier in the day, when Federal Protective Service officers and Miami police cordoned off the area directly in front of the courthouse while they investigated what they described as a suspicious package discovered in a local television station’s satellite truck. After roughly an hour, officers signaled that there was no danger, and reporters returned to their work while awaiting the former president’s arrival. Throughout all the chaos, Miami residents who live and work in the downtown area milled about the courthouse plaza as they went about their day. One such city denizen who spoke to The Independent but declined to state his name, said he thought the ex-president could have avoided the jeopardy posed by the case against him had he just followed the law. “I don’t know why he did it … I read the indictment and he would’ve been in a good place right now if he’d just given it all back when asked,” he said. The Miami resident, who was out walking his American Bulldog, Don Julio, commented that there appeared to be far more reporters than protesters. Don Julio, who at first seemed slightly annoyed by the interruption to his daily routine, did not comment on the allegations against Mr Trump, but instead sat down next to this reporter to accept a belly rub before looking out at the courthouse plaza, a broad smile on his face. Read More Trump indictment - live: Trump greets fans with free food after arrest, not guilty plea at Miami arraignment Clashes break out at Trump arraignment courthouse after ‘suspicious package’ sparks police response Chaos erupts as protester in prison garb jumps in front of Trump motorcade Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement

Chaos erupted in Miami after a protester jumped in front of former President Donald Trump’s motorcade as he left the federal courthouse after pleading not guilty to the 37 counts against him in connection to his alleged mishandling of national defence information. In an interview with The Independent before the incident took place, the protester identified himself as Domenic Santana. Speaking about why he was at the court, he said: “Hopefully, someday he has to be locked up. He should have been locked up a long, long time ago. He's gotten away with it. He's the master of spin, a graduate from the New York School of Rats and he has a master's degree and he knows how to spin it. He's going to spin it on this one. ‘It's political. It's because I'm running for president that they're accusing me.’” “He has his case made up. He doesn't need lawyers to defend him. He already knows the spin. Before the election, ‘Oh, if I lose it’s because of fraud’. That day he lost – ‘Oh, fraud, fraud fraud’. His Attorney General – ‘There was no fraud’. ‘You're fired,’ the next day. Come on. Enough is enough,” Mr Santana added. Footage from the scene appeared to show Mr Santana being tackled to the ground and arrested. Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Santana told the Sun Sentinel that supporters of Mr Trump “came for me. They were calling me a communist. Trump is a rat who graduated from the school of rats. He should have been locked up a long, long time ago”. Mr Santana is a Cuban-American retiree, according to the Palm Beach Post. He said he came to the court to confront Mr Trump’s “cult-like” following. “These charges are just the beginning of his lies.” On Monday evening, police separated Mr Santana from the crowd following a confrontation with supporters of the former president. Mr Santana, who lives in Miami, showed up at the courthouse the next day in the same old-school prison outfit and carrying his “Lock him up” sign. “He should have been locked up a long time ago,” he reiterated, according to the Miami New Times. Read More Trump indictment — live: Trump pleads not guilty in classified documents case at Miami court arraignment Trump supporters attack Miami’s Republican mayor outside Trump arraignment Clashes break out at Trump arraignment courthouse after ‘suspicious package’ sparks police response Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement

Donald Trump pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in a Miami courthouse on 37 charges over his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House, as he becomes the first current or former US president to ever face federal criminal charges. The former president sat stonefaced in court and the plea was entered by his lawyer Todd Blanche. He arrived for his arraignment alongside codefendant Walt Nauta, at a federal court in the Southern District of Florida shortly before 2pm ET for the 3pm hearing. He had previously vowed to plead not guilty to all charges. Despite his confidence and extensive protestations online, The Independent exclusively revealed that Mr Trump was struggling to find attorneys willing to defend him in Florida. Miami officials meanwhile were braced for protests outside the courthouse with Mayor Francis Suarez saying at a press conference that the city is enacting plans to “make sure that everyone has a right to peacefully express themselves and exercise their constitutional rights” in “an obviously peaceful manner”. After the hearing Mr Trump and Mr Nauta stopped at a famous family-owned Cuban restaurant in Little Havana where supporters sang Happy Birthday to him. He turns 77 tomorrow. Read More Watch live as Trump arraigned on federal charges at Miami courthouse Handcuffs, fingerprints or a mugshot? What to expect as Trump faces arraignment in federal court Trump now claims classified documents were ‘planted’ in Mar-a-Lago boxes in wild arraignment morning rant

For the second time in three months, the man who served as the 45th President of the United States stood before a judge as a defendant in a criminal case that could cost his freedom for a significant portion of his remaining lifespan. Flanked by attorneys Todd Blanche and Christopher Kise, Donald Trump entered a Miami federal courtroom as US Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman formally presented him with a 37-count indictment accusing the former president of illegally retaining national defense documents and other classified materials at his Florida home, and obstructing government efforts to reclaim them. Asked to enter a plea to the charges, Mr Blanche replied on behalf of the twice-impeached and now twice-indicted former president: “Not guilty”. Mr Trump was arraigned alongside his longtime personal aide and now co-defendant Walt Nauta, who served as Mr Trump’s White House valet and followed him to political exile in Florida when he left the White House in January 2021. The former president arrived at the Wilkie Ferguson Jr Federal Courthouse shortly before 2pm ET on 13 June after traveling with a motorcade and police motorcycle escort from his National Doral Hotel. He was not photographed entering the court complex as he surrendered to authorities; the armoured SUV carrying the former president entered through an underground gate typically reserved as a secure entrance for vehicles transporting defendants in law enforcement custody. Cameras, recording devices and laptops are prohibited from the courtroom. Outside the courthouse following Mr Trump’s arrest, one of his attorneys Alina Habba told reporters in brief remarks that the former president remains “defiant” while condemning what Mr Trump and his allies have characterised as a “two-tiered system of justice, where selective treatment is the norm.” “Today is not about President Donald J Trump, who is defiant,” she said. “It is about the destruction of the long-standing American principles that have set this country apart for so long.” Two of the more experienced criminal defence lawyers in his legal team, James Trusty and John Rowley, resigned from Mr Trump’s federal case last week, hours after a Florida grand jury voted to charge him with 37 separate counts stemming from alleged violations of the Espionage Act and other crimes. Another criminal defence attorney who once represented Mr Trump in the documents probe, Evan Corcoran, stepped away from that role in the wake of a court ruling ordering him to give evidence against the former president before a grand jury and turn over his notes and recordings. A judge invoked a rarely used exception to the attorney-client privilege used in cases where an attorney’s advice is found to have been used to commit crimes. Mr Corcoran’s testimony and evidence figured heavily in Mr Trump’s federal indictment, which detailed his reaction after he was served with a subpoena compelling him to return all documents with classification markings in his possession. Mr Blanche, who represented Mr Trump in his criminal case in Manhattan, and Mr Kise, a former Florida solicitor general who joined the former president’s legal team after the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago last summer, are representing him in his federal case. Mr Trump did not pose for a mugshot or be handcuffed after his surrender to authorities as US Marshals and probation officers began pretrial services. He is scheduled to immediately return to his Bedminster, New Jersey club to deliver remarks before a fundraising event. He similarly returned to his Mar-a-Lago property hours after he appeared in Manhattan criminal court in April to face 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. In his remarks from his estate that night, he lambasted District Attorney Alvin Bragg and the judge overseeing the case, as well as the judge’s family members, and continued his narrative of political persecution. This is a developing story Read More Trump arraignment – live: Trump spared handcuffs at Miami court as he rages at ‘saddest’ day in US history How Trump’s second indictment unfolded: A timeline of the investigation into Mar-a-Lago documents Handcuffs, fingerprints or a mugshot? What to expect as Trump faces arraignment in federal court

Miami Police blocked off a plaza in front of the Miami courthouse where former President Donald Trump was set to be arraigned. The authorities moved members of the public and the media across the street from the court as a suspicious package was investigated. The all-clear was given shortly after 11.30am on Tuesday. According to Nicole Ninsalata of WSVN, a bomb squad responded to a sidewalk outside the courthouse, where a flatscreen TV with yellow wires coming out of the back was spotted. Protesters and supporters of Mr Trump began clashing ahead of the arraignment with video emerging of arguments where police stepped in. As Mr Trump arrived in Florida on Monday night, footage shared on Twitter appeared to show Trump supporters confronting a man holding anti-Trump signs. Police separated a man wearing a prison costume and holding a sign saying “Lock him up” from the crowd following a confrontation with supporters of the former president. Former Trump White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon appeared worried about anti-Trump protesters during his programme on Real America’s Voice, a rightwing broadcaster. “If you’re asking for trouble, you let these two groups get together because the Never Trump, the anti-Trump and Antifa, BLM, are violent people,” he claimed. “And they’re always there to get in people’s faces. They’re always there to try to pick fights. And I’m just an observer here anchoring in Washington DC, but I gotta tell you, I’m not enthusiastic about what I’m seeing down there on the crowd control. I think that we’re just asking for problems and what we don’t want today are problems.” “This thing we want to get in and out of, and I hope the Miami authorities and others do the job that the NYPD does,” he added in reference to Mr Trump’s arraignment earlier this year in a separate case. On Monday, supporters of Mr Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis were seen outside the courthouse in a shouting match over Covid-19 vaccines and Mr Trump’s response to the pandemic. This comes after Miami officials claimed that they will have everything under control as Mr Trump appears in court. Speaking at a press conference at Miami police headquarter, Mayor Francis Suarez said the city is enacting plans to “make sure that everyone has a right to peacefully express themselves and exercise their constitutional rights” in “an obviously peaceful manner”. “In our city, we obviously believe in the Constitution and believe that people should have the right to express themselves. But we also believe in law and order. And we know that and we hope that tomorrow will be peaceful. “We encourage people to be peaceful in demonstrating how they feel. And we’re going to have the adequate forces necessary to ensure that,” he said. Mr Suarez, who is rumoured to be planning to enter the 2024 Republican presidential primary himself, declined to criticise the ex-president’s rhetoric and said he has not spoken to Mr Trump to ask him to retract his calls for protest, despite the former president’s history of inciting violence. “I have not spoken to him. I don’t have his phone number,” he said. Mr Suarez appeared to compare the events of January 6 and the potential violence that could ensue on Tuesday to the protests that followed the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in the summer of 2020. He said city and state law enforcement officials handled those protests without incident and called the response to those events “a model for how to deal with those protests in the country”. “We did things not to create unnecessary confrontations. We gave people a space to express themselves without unnecessarily creating confrontations. In that moment, in that particular case, we had a curfew that we implemented. We had a variety of different resources that we used, that I thought were different than other cities in America, and they allowed us to deescalate without creating incidents,” he said. “I have full faith and confidence that our department … will have the right action plan and will have the right resources in place. In the right place to make sure that there are no incidents,” he said. But Mr Suarez repeatedly declined to address concerns about the possibility that the same violent extremist groups that responded to Mr Trump’s call for protests in 2021 would again come to support him on Tuesday. He also told reporters there would be no effort to separate protesters and counterprotesters and said law enforcement would not be erecting any hardened barrier around the courthouse because “that’s what freedom of speech is”. Because the courthouse is a federal facility, Department of Homeland Security personnel there began to take some precautions for potential protests on Monday. Outside the building where Mr Trump will be arraigned, marked police vehicles belonging to the Federal Protective could be seen parked strategically in areas not already rendered inaccessible to cars with concrete bollards and other preexisting vehicle barriers, blocking a path from the street onto courthouse property. Groups of FPS officers, some leading explosive detection dogs, could be seen congregating in areas where shade from trees could shield them from the hot Florida sun. Around 10.30am, other officers began positioning moveable barriers and stretching police tape to cordon off a wide swath of the courthouse lawn from public access in preparation for possible demonstrations by Mr Trump’s supporters, should any heed the twice-impeached, twice-indicted ex-president’s call for protests on the day of his arraignment. One FPS officer who asked not to be identified told The Independent that he and his colleagues were hopeful that the crowd would remain peaceful, but said they were aware that things could go south quickly.“We’re prepared for anything but we’re hoping there won’t be any trouble,” he said. Read More Police monitoring online far-right threats and pro-Trump protests with federal indictment: ‘This is war’ Trump arraignment – live: Miami courthouse hit by security scare as Trump tries out wild new defence With Trump on trial, an outrageous president sets another unwelcome precedent

Donald Trump will be arraigned today on 37 charges over his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House, as he becomes the first current or former US president to ever face federal criminal charges. The former president will appear for his arraignment at a federal court in the Southern District of Florida at 3pm ET, where he has vowed to plead not guilty to all charges. “I’ll just say ‘not guilty.’ I didn’t do anything wrong,” he told Boston radio show WRKO on Tuesday. Despite his confidence, The Independent exclusively revealed that Mr Trump was struggling to find attorneys willing to defend him in Florida. Miami officials meanwhile are bracing for protests outside the courthouse with Mayor Francis Suarez saying at a press conference that the city is enacting plans to “make sure that everyone has a right to peacefully express themselves and exercise their constitutional rights” in “an obviously peaceful manner”. Several supporters have voiced violent rhetoric online and MAGA loyalists Kari Lake and Laura Loomer, the Proud Boys and at least one Capitol rioter (named Baked Alaska) are expected to descend on Miami in support of the former president. Read More Trump vows to ‘go after’ Biden’s family in bitter Truth Social rant before boarding Miami arraignment jet Trump will face judge in historic court appearance over charges he mishandled secret documents Police monitoring online far-right threats and pro-Trump protests with federal indictment: ‘This is war’

Former New Jersey governor and 2024 presidential candidate Chris Christie appeared before Americans on Monday night in a town hall hosted by CNN. During the event, Mr Christie tore into Donald Trump, accusing the former president of “vanity run amok.” “The conduct in there is awful,” Mr Christie said of the former president’s recent indictment. The former New Jersey governor also hammered Mr Trump’s record on immigration, can called him a “child” who can’t accept losing the 2020 election. Less than a week ago, Mr Christie officially entered the already-packed race for the Republican nomination. He joins former president Donald Trump, former vice president Mike Pence, former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley and more. Thus far, the former New Jersey official is polling well behind the rest of the Republican frontrunners, barely cracking one per cent support. Read More Chris Christie hits back at Trump’s mockery over his weight: ‘He’s such a spoiled baby’ Christie mocks ‘loser’ Trump for taking secret papers ‘on summer vacation’ and accuses him of ‘vanity run amok’ Who is running for president in 2024?

Former president Donald Trump has arrived in Miami ahead of his arraignment on 37 charges over his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House. The former president flew from Newark Liberty International Airport to Miami International Airport yesterday afternoon and spent the night at his Mar-a-Lago estate – the Florida home where he is accused of hoarding troves of classified papers, including national defence information. Mr Trump will appear for his arraignment in a federal courtroom in downtown Miami this afternoon, before flying straight back to New Jersey where he has announced plans to deliver remarks tonight at his golf club. While Mr Trump gave defiant speeches at two Republican state conventions on Saturday in Georgia and North Carolina, his former attorney general Bill Barr has said that – after reviewing the indictment – he believes Mr Trump is “toast”. “If even half of it is true, then he’s toast,” he said of the 49-page indictment. Mr Trump responded by lashing out at Mr Barr both on Truth Social and during a sprawling interview on Roger Stone’s radio show where he branded the former top prosecutor a “gutless pig”. Read More Trump’s favourability rises in poll despite indictment Jonathan Turley tells Fox News the Trump indictment is ‘extremely damning’ and a ‘hit below the waterline’ Trump, allies escalate attacks on criminal case as history-making court appearance approaches Is Donald Trump going to prison?

Chris Christie was in peak form Monday evening as he laid into former President Donald Trump in his second town hall-style appearance as a presidential candidate. The governor’s performance on CNN was in many ways a repeat of his initial launch event at St Anselm College in New Hampshire a week earlier. But the governor fine-tuned his attacks over the days ahead of his first cable news spot, and came out swinging against the Republican frontrunner. He largely ignored his other GOP rivals as he took questions from voters and moderator Anderson Cooper, while landing every blow he could on his main rival (and former ally). Mr Christie hit his opponent on nearly every topic, from his most recent indictment for the mishandling of presidential records and violations of the Espionage Act to the performance of the Republican Party electorally since 2016, blame for which he laid squarely at the the feet of the de facto GOP leader. “He flew the boxes up to New Jersey for summer vacation. What is this, like, they’re a family member?” Mr Christie vented at one point, referencing recent reporting on the 37-count indictment Mr Trump faces in the Southern District of Florida. “This is vanity run amok, ego run amok,” he continued. More follows... Read More Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement

Former New Jersey governor and 2024 presidential candidate Chris Christie will appear before Americans on Monday night in a town hall hosted by CNN. Less than a week ago, Mr Christie officially entered the already-packed race for the Republican nomination. He joins former president Donald Trump, former vice president Mike Pence, former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley and more. Thus far, the former New Jersey official is polling well behind the rest of the Republican frontrunners, barely cracking one per cent support. The former governor launched his campaign positioning himself as a moderate-conservative alternative to former president Donald Trump, who Mr Christie called a “self-consumed, self-serving, mirror hog.” Mr Christie will likely continue to set himself apart from the former president, who he twice endorsed, in the town hall. It is set to begin at 8pm EST, hosted by Anderson Cooper.

Donald Trump’s supporters and many Republican officials contend that the former president is the target of a politically weaponised justice system that has ignored similar alleged crimes committed by his rivals. “Lock her up” chants directed at Hillary Clinton still dominate GOP rallies. House Republicans have launched committees to investigate the sitting president and his family. But in classified documents cases involving President Joe Biden and former vice president Mike Pence, both men cooperated with federal law enforcement and returned those records. Ms Clinton was not found to have deliberately mishandled classified information or obstruct justice in the recovery of communications. Mr Trump, according to prosecutors, did exactly that. A federal indictment details the alleged coordination among Mr Trump, his aides and attorneys to bring documents to his Mar-a-Lago property and, later, conceal them from law enforcement when US officials sought their return. His alleged refusal and obstruction is at the centre of the 37-count indictment against him. The indictment lays out more than 40 pages of allegations based on witness testimony and recordings allegedly showing how the former president sought to hide and keep classified documents by conspiring with his aides to obstruct an investigation into their recovery, then lied to both the government and his own attorneys about them. He faces 31 counts of willful retention of national defence information in violation of the Espionage Act, carrying a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. Each count represents a different top-secret document Mr Trump held at his Mar-a-Lago property, months after he left the White House in January 2021. The indictment does not include charges connected to dozens of other documents that he ultimately did return in the course of investigations surrounding the case – underscoring some of the key differences between his prosecution and those involving the former vice presidents. Late last year, a lawyer for Mr Biden discovered a “small number” of classified documents from his time as vice president under then-President Barack Obama during a search of a Washington DC office space. Those documents were returned to the Justice Department. Another batch of documents were discovered at his home in Wilmington, Delaware. Federal law enforcement agents found more when they searched the property. In January, US Attorney General Merrick Garland named a special counsel to investigate those documents, which is still ongoing. No charges have been filed. The Justice Department also closed an investigation into Mr Pence earlier this month after the discovery of classified material at his home in Indiana. There were no allegations of obstruction or the willful retention of such documents, and no charges were brought against him. And in Ms Clinton’s case, then-FBI director James Comey said she was “extremely careless” with her handling of sensitive information, but law enforcement officials found no clear evidence that she intentionally obstructed justice or committed any other crimes in connection with the server. He said “no reasonable prosecutor” would have brought a case against her. Those findings stand in stark contrast to the allegations in the indictment against Mr Trump, who is accused of actively concealing documents and even suggesting that a lawyer hide them or falsely state to authorities that all requested records were returned, while hundreds remained at his property. None of the nearly 200 documents that Mr Trump ultimately returned to authorities are connected to the charges against him, suggesting that if he had returned them in the first place, he may not face criminal prosecution. In January of last year, a year after leaving the White House after losing his 2020 re-election bid, Mr Trump gave 15 boxes of documents to the National Archives and Records Administration, as required under the Presidential Records Act. The agency wrote to Mr Trump in May 2021 noting that some documents were missing, noting that there are “certain paper/textual records that we cannot account for.” Around that same time, according to the indictment, Mr Trump directed aides to clear a storage room on the ground floor of Mar-a-Lago. More than 80 boxes were moved there, according to prosecutors. A few months later, he allegedly showed a “plan of attack” document prepared by the US Department of Defense to a group at his Bedminster, New Jersey club. “As president I could have declassified it,” he said, according to a transcript of a recorded conversation in the indictment. “Now I can’t, you know, but this is still a secret.” The National Archives received 15 boxes from Mr Trump in January 2022, 14 of which contained classified materials, according to prosecutors. Among them, 67 were marked “confidential,” 92 were marked “secret” and 25 were marked “top secret.” The next month, the agency alerted the US Department of Justice that classified information was discovered in those boxes. It was then that a criminal investigation surrounding the former president started to build – not from the results of the National Archives and its ultimately successful recovery of 15 boxes. A federal grand jury was opened in April of last year. In the weeks and months that followed, Mr Trump’s aide Walt Nauta began moving more than a dozen boxes out of the storage room, according to the indictment. Mr Nauta also is charged in connection with the case. On 3 June of last year, Mr Trump’s then-attorney Christina Bobb falsely certified to federal law enforcement that the former president’s legal team performed a “diligent search” for “any and all responsive documents” at his property, and that no other classified documents were found, according to prosecutors. The Justice Department received 38 documents in that file, including 17 marked “top secret,” 16 labeled “secret” and five others marked as confidential. Meanwhile, Mr Nauta and others loaded several boxes onto a plane that Mr Trump boarded out of his Florida home, according to the indictment. In August, FBI agents performed a search of Mar-a-Lago and discovered more than 100 classified documents among hundreds of government documents and photographs. In the documents outlined in the indictment, at least two of which involved nuclear secrets according to an inventory listed in the indictment, 21 were discovered by FBI agents who searched Mar-a-Lago. Ten others were turned over to federal authorities last June in response to a grand jury subpoena. Others involved intelligence briefings, foreign military activity, communication with foreign leaders, foreign military impacts on US interests, and communications with a foreign leader. According to prosecutors, Mr Trump conspired to conceal documents from a grand jury and federal officials, by suggesting that his attorneys make false statements to authorities, by moving boxes of documents to hide from attorneys, by suggesting that documents be hidden or destroyed, and by falsely certifying that classified documents were produced to authorities “when, in fact, they had not.” Prosecutors are expected to present compelling evidence that the former president knowingly and deliberately misled his attorneys about his retention of sensitive documents He also appears, on a tape, six months after leaving office, saying that a document in his possession was “classified”, “highly confidential” and “secret information” while admitting that he was not able to declassify it, because he was no longer president – undercutting a critical part of his public defence over the last several months. 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