Chanel Rion –OAN Chief White House Correspondent
UPDATED 9:15 AM PT – TUESDAY, AUGUST 9, 2022
The FBI executed a search warrant at Doanld Trump’s home in Mar-a-Lago over allegations Trump took classified documents from the White House. FBI Warrant issued by Judge accused of letting off Jeffrey Epstein.
Mark Elias, Hillary Clinton’s top campaign attorney, says Trump could be disqualified from a second White House term after the FBI’s Monday raid. The FBI raided Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home under the guise of hunting for classified documents allegedly taken from the White House when Trump left office.
Elias cited U.S. Code Title 18, Section 2071 — a law pertaining to federal record keeping. “The media is missing the really, really big reason why the raid today is a potential blockbuster in American politics,” Elias tweeted.
The media is missing the really, really big reason why the raid today is a potential blockbuster in American politics.? pic.twitter.com/3BdI9NA9Az
— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) August 9, 2022
Former President Trump learned of the raid while at Trump Tower in New York — sharing the news himself late Monday:
“My beautiful home, Mar-A-Lago… is currently under siege, raided, and occupied by a large group of FBI agents.”
Elias insists if the FBI show the President tampered or illegally hid these documents, Trump could be banned from any public office in the US.
NO, TRUMP CAN’T BE DISQUALIFIED UNDER US CODE 18, SECTION 2071
Even the New York Times had to engage in a sobering legal realization — that Trump cannot be disqualified from seeking re-election under this law:
Another difficulty in Elias’ argument is the fact Donald Trump as president held broad powers over classified documents.
Christina Bobb, one of Trump’s top attorneys, was present for the raid. Bobb tells OAN:
“This is absolutely a farce. To pretend this is somehow law and order or an attempt at criminal justice is absolutely ridiculous.”
Bobb says the raid was pure political theater:
“President Trump himself, as well as his legal team, has been more than accommodating and allowed access to whatever they have wanted.”
The raid included thirty FBI agents descending upon Trump’s Florida estate — initially in plain clothes — who then used their search warrant to enter the grounds and rifle through Trump’s private office and break into his safe.
EPSTEIN ENTANGLED JUDGE GRANTED THE FBI SEARCH WARRANT
Secret Service was forced to honor the warrant, which was issued by Judge Bruce Reinhart. Reinhart, according to the Miami Herald, was a magistrate judge in South Florida where he oversaw an early Epstein case that let the pedophile off on just 13 months of county jail time. The following year, Reinhart resigned from the South Florida US Attorney’s Office to represent Epstein’s top employees, including Epstein’s pilot and scheduler.
Reinhart was named in a civil suit accusing him of violating DOJ policies by seeking to curry favor with Epstein and his associates. Reinhart denied these charges, but was contradicted by his own colleagues in a 2013 court filing alleging Reinhart had “learned confidential, non-public information about the Epstein matter.” The complaints were ultimately dismissed by the DOJ.
Reinhart is one of three federal magistrate judges in the West Palm Beach offices of the US District Court for the Southern District Court of Florida, along with William Matthewman and Ryon McCabe.
The raid seems to have emboldened President Trump’s resolve even further going into 2024. Trump posted to Truth Social a fiery campaign style ad hinting at a 2024 run: