'Threat to democracy': Donald Trump slams Joe Biden for authorizing 'unconstitutional' FBI raid at Mar-a-Lago
WASHINGTON, DC: Former president Donald Trump has once again taken to his social media platform, Truth Social, to express his outrage at President Joe Biden and the US Department of Justice.
This comes after it was revealed how classified documents in his bedroom at his Mar-a-Lago property were found on Tuesday, May 21.
Trump’s fury was ignited by what he perceives as an “unconstitutional” raid on his Florida property in August 2022, during which he alleges that FBI agents were given the green light to use “deadly force.”
Donald Trump’s accusations against Joe Biden
A new court filing unsealed Tuesday, May 21, provides a behind-the-scenes look at how federal agents prepared for and executed the raid on Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence.
It also claimed that four documents marked “classified” were found in Trump's bedroom four months after the search as per Politico. This information comes from a newly unsealed opinion by US District Judge Beryl Howell.
The 87-page document presented by prosecutors suggests that Trump knowingly hid national security documents in his home, and attempted to conceal them when the Department of Justice tried to retrieve them.
Judge Howell’s opinion, along with other secret grand jury documents, were revealed as part of an investigation into Trump’s retention of classified documents, including sensitive military secrets, after his term ended in 2021.
“Notably, no excuse is provided as to how the former president could miss the classified-marked documents found in his own bedroom at Mar-a-Lago.” Judge Howell wrote in her opinion as per Independent.
Donald Trump claims Joe Biden is 'mentally unfit' to hold office
In his online tirade on Truth Social, Trump wrote: “WOW! I just came out of the Biden Witch Hunt Trial in Manhattan, the ‘Icebox,’ and was shown Reports that Crooked Joe Biden’s DOJ, in their Illegal and UnConstitutional Raid of Mar-a-Lago, AUTHORIZED THE FBI TO USE DEADLY (LETHAL) FORCE.”
He went on to assert that Biden is a “serious threat to democracy,” and called into question his mental fitness for office, invoking the 25th Amendment.
"NOW WE KNOW, FOR SURE, THAT JOE BIDEN IS A SERIOUS THREAT TO DEMOCRACY. HE IS MENTALLY UNFIT TO HOLD OFFICE — 25TH AMENDMENT!" wrote Trump.
There were additional classified documents stored in Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago property
The FBI’s search of Mar-a-Lago in August 2022 confirmed that dozens of other classified documents remained on the property.
The raid led to the filing of 37 charges related to his alleged failure to return classified materials after his presidential term ended for which he pleaded not guilty last June.
“Two months after the former president yielded 38 unique classified documents to the government on June 3, 2022, the government discovered over 100 additional classified documents stored in Mar-a-Lago during execution of the August 8, 2022 search warrant that the former president had failed to deliver,” the opinion stated further according to Independent.
“The documents were classified to levels as high as TOP SECRET, with some documents bearing additional sensitive compartment indications; undoubtedly, these documents contained national defense information," it added.
“More classified-marked documents still were uncovered in November 2022 in a leased storage unit, in December 2022 in the Office at Mar-a-Lago, and apparently sometime thereafter in the former president’s own bedroom at Mar-a-Lago," it stated further.
Behind the scenes of an FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago
The former president's motion in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida challenges the legality of the FBI's raid, in addition to the Special Counsel's Office allegedly violating his attorney-client privilege.
Newsweek cited an "operational order" that gives a glimpse into how federal agents prepared for and carried out the raid on Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in August 2022.
The agents were allowed to use “deadly force” if necessary, according to the order for the 9 am raid.
The agents, who were told to wear unmarked polo or collared shirts, planned to bring “standard issue weapons, ammo, handcuffs and medium and large sized bolt cutters.”
A plan was also made for any emergencies that might occur during the raid. This included having a paramedic on standby at the scene in case someone got “injured.”
The name, address, and phone number of the nearest local trauma center were also listed. The plan also stated that agents “will be prepared to engage with” Trump and the US Secret Service if he had been at Mar-a-Lago.
The criminal case, one of four currently involving the former president, has led to tense exchanges between Trump, his legal team, and Special Counsel Jack Smith of the Department of Justice (DOJ).
