On Tuesday, Politico reported that Republicans feel boxed in by their constant efforts to defend former President Donald Trump from the FBI investigation into highly classified information stored in boxes as his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida — as new revelations continue to pour out of the investigation that makes Trump's actions appear less and less defensible.
"After having decried the FBI’s search of the ex-president’s home, many Trump defenders went silent upon the release on Friday of the probable-cause affidavit that revealed the extent of Trump’s efforts to hold onto the top-secret documents," reported Meridith McGraw, Andrew Desiderio, Nicholas Wu, and Kyle Cheney. "GOP worries about the developments of the case and Trump announcing a 2024 run before November are giving way to a subtle, broader warning about putting the former president too much on the ballot this fall."
One of the most prominent Republicans pushing this line is Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who has generated controversy for warning "there will be riots in the street" if the former president is prosecuted.
"Some top Republicans acknowledge the growing angst and concern, as it’s become clearer that Trump may have been warehousing some of America’s most sensitive secrets in an unsecured basement — and even refused to turn them over when the National Archives and Justice Department tried to recover them," said the report. "One top Republican fundraiser asked to describe the mood among donors, said, 'There is enormous frustration.'"
"Strained defenses and private frustrations are familiar emotions for some Republicans during the Trump era. But the stakes are particularly high this fall, with projections of a red wave in the House getting dimmed to a smaller GOP majority and as Sen. Chuck Schumer appears potentially poised to remain in control of the Senate," noted the report.
The latest releases from the partially redacted FBI affidavit used to obtain the Mar-a-Lago search warrant revealed Trump had massive amounts of classified information just in the 15 boxes he returned to the National Archives earlier this year, including documents marked TOP SECRET and information pertaining to clandestine human sources.
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