National Archives warns it is ‘not certain’ that Trump has surrendered all the presidential records he removed from the White House
- Staff from the National Archives informed the House Oversight Committee they are ‘not certain’ former President Donald Trump returned every document
- House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney revealed that tidbit Tuesday in a letter to acting Archivist of the United States Debra Steidel Wall
- Maloney asked Wall to conduct an ‘urgent review’ to find out what’s missing, asking for an initial assessment by September 27
- Maloney, a New York Democrat, also demanded that the Archives get written certification from Trump that all documents were returned
National Archives staff have told the House Oversight Committee that they are ‘not certain’ Donald Trump surrendered all the presidential records he removed from the White House – even after the Mar-a-Lago raid.
House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney revealed the concerns in a letter Tuesday written to acting Archivist of the United States Debra Steidel Wall asking that the Archives conduct an ‘urgent review’ to find out what’s missing.
Maloney, a New York Democrat, also demanded that the Archives get written certification from Trump that all documents have been returned.
In late August, Archives staff told Oversight committee staff on a call that they weren’t sure if Trump had returned every record he was supposed to.
This admission happened after the August 8 FBI raid of Mar-a-Lago, in which more than 11,000 government records were found at Trump’s Florida home and private club – including more than 100 with classified markings, and a number with the highest classification distinction.
Staff for the National Archives recently informed the House Oversight Committee that they are ‘not certain’ whether former President Donald Trump (pictured) surrendered all the presidential records he removed from the White House
House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney (pictured) revealed that tidbit in a letter Tuesday written to acting Archivist of the United States Debra Steidel Wall asking that the Archives conduct an ‘urgent review’ to find out what’s missing
The raid of Mar-a-Lago (pictured) uncovered some 11,000 government records – including more than 100 with classified markings, and a number with the highest classification distinction
A Department of Justice image attached to a court filing released on August 31 purportedly shows the documents retreived by FBI agents during the August 8 raid of Trump’s Florida home and private club, Mar-a-Lago
The House Oversight committee is conducting a separate investigation from that of the Justice Department.
‘On at least three separate occasions, Mr. Trump had the opportunity to turn over all presidential records and classified documents, as demanded by federal authorities, but failed to do so,’ Maloney observed.
She noted that Trump could have turned over the documents at the completion of his term in January 2021, after receiving the May 2021 request from the Archives and, once again, after receiving a grand jury subpoena in May 2022.
‘The Committee is concerned that, given this pattern of conduct, Mr. Trump may continue to retain presidential records at non-secure locations, including classified material that could endanger our nation’s security and other important records documenting Mr. Trump’s activities at the White House,’ Maloney wrote.
‘NARA’s staff recently informed the Committee that the agency is not certain whether all presidential records are in its custody,’ the congresswoman said.
Maloney asked the Archives to conduct an urgent review ‘to identify any presidential records or categories of presidential records, whether textual or electronic, that NARA has reason to believe may still be outside of the agency’s custody and control.’
‘Please also assess any other limitations on the completeness, accuracy, and accessibility of presidential records provided to NARA by the Trump Administration,’ the New York Democrat said.
In the letter, Maloney wrote that she’d like the Archives to provide an initial assessment of the review by September 27.
She also argued that Trump should sign a certificate that would show ‘that he has surrendered all presidential records or classified materials, has not made any copies or reproductions of such materials, and has not transferred any records or government documents to any party other than NARA or DOJ since his term ended.’
‘Although the President is not required under current law to provide such a certification, I believe that the exceptional circumstances in this case warrant that Mr. Trump do the same so Congress and the American people can fully understand the impact of his actions on our nation’s security, take mitigating action, and consider legislative reforms,’ Maloney said.
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