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If you’d rather read the quick summary of these “claims,” I would direct you to this insightful Rolling Stone article posted today.
[Note: Thankfully President Biden, as the current Executive, has seen fit to “NOT grant any of these claims” — citing that doing so, would not be in the best interests of the nation.]
If instead, you would like see all the Govt Docs that the former exec, NOW wants to hide from public scrutiny, I direct you to this Court Filing Document. I’ve made some key excerpts, annotated into list format, and added some additional emphasis:
Case 1:21-cv-02769-TSC Document 21-1 Filed 10/30/21 Page 9 of 57
Further Notifications
27. On October 15, 2021, NARA provided the fourth notification to the [Presidential Records Act] PRA Representatives of former President Trump of its intent to disclose 551 pages of records responsive to the Thompson Request, and on October 22, 2021, [National Archives and Records Administration] NARA notified the PRA Representatives of President Biden of its intent to disclose the same records (together, the Fourth Notification).
pg 10
28. NARA anticipates providing multiple additional notifications for electronic records, including email, digital photographs, and additional hard copy records, on a rolling basis as it is able to locate responsive records.
General Nature of the Responsive Records Identified To Date
29. I discuss below the general categories of records included in the First, Second, and Third Notifications over which former President Trump has made particularized assertions of executive privilege. The following is not intended as a detailed description of these records on a page-by-page or even document-by-document basis.
30. First Notification: The First Notification includes 136 pages of records transferred to NARA from (i) the files of Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, (ii) the files of Senior Advisor to the President Stephen Miller, (iii) the files of Deputy Counsel to the President Patrick Philbin, (iv) the White House Daily Diary, which is a chronological record of the President’s movements, phone calls, trips, briefings, meetings, and activities, (v) the White House Office of Records Management, and (vi) the files of Brian de Guzman, Director of White House Information Services.
31. President Trump made particularized assertions of executive privilege over 46 of these 136 pages of records (including seven pages of records that, as noted above, had been removed as non-responsive). He asserted privilege over:
(i) daily presidential diaries, schedules, appointment information showing visitors to the White House, activity logs, call logs, and switchboard shift-change checklists showing calls to the President and Vice President, all specifically for or encompassing January 6, 2021 (30 pages);
(ii) drafts of speeches, remarks, and correspondence concerning the events of January 6, 2021 (13 pages); and (iii) three handwritten notes concerning the events of January 6 from Mr. Meadows’ files (3 pages).
pg 11
32. Second Notification: The Second Notification includes 742 pages of records transferred to NARA from: (i) the files of Chief of Staff Mark Meadows; (ii) the White House Office of the Executive Clerk; (iii) files from the White House Oval Office Operations; (iv) the files of White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany; and (v) Senior Advisor to the President Stephen Miller.
33. President Trump made particularized assertions of executive privilege over 656 of these 742 pages of records. He asserted privilege over:
(i) pages from multiple binders containing proposed talking points for the Press Secretary, interspersed with a relatively small number of related statements and documents, principally relating to allegations of voter fraud, election security, and other topics concerning the 2020 election (629 pages);
(ii) presidential activity calendars and a related handwritten note for January 6, 2021, and for January 2021 generally, including January 6 (11 pages);
(iii) draft text of a presidential speech for the January 6, 2021, Save America March (10 pages);
(iv) a handwritten note from former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’ files listing potential or scheduled briefings and telephone calls concerning the January 6 certification and other election issues (2 pages); and
(v) a draft Executive Order on the topic of election integrity (4 pages).
34. Third Notification: The Third Notification includes 146 pages of records transferred to NARA from (i) the White House Office of the Executive Clerk and (ii) the files of Deputy White House Counsel Patrick Philbin.
35. President Trump made particularized assertions of executive privilege over 68 of these 146 pages of records. He asserted privilege over:
(i) a draft proclamation honoring the Capitol Police and deceased officers Brian Sicknick and Howard Liebengood, and related emails
pg 12
from the files of the Office of the Executive Clerk (53 pages); and
(ii) records from the files of Deputy White House Counsel Patrick Philbin, including a memorandum apparently originating outside the White House regarding a potential lawsuit by the United States against several states President Biden won (4 pages),
an email chain originating from a state official regarding election-related issues (3 pages),
talking points on alleged election irregularities in one Michigan county (3 pages),
a document containing presidential findings concerning the security of the 2020 presidential election and ordering various actions (3 pages),
and notes apparently indicating from whom some of the foregoing were sent (2 pages).
Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1746, I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.
Executed this 29th day of October, 2021
_______________________________________
B. JOHN LASTER
BILLY LASTER Digitally signed by BILLY LASTER
Date: 2021.10.29 19:46:23 -04'00'
[Director of the White House Liaison Division of the Office of Legislative Archives, Presidential Libraries, and Museum Services in the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)]
Case 1:21-cv-02769-TSC Document 21-1 Filed 10/30/21 Page 12 of 57
That’s a LOT of Presidential Records that the Biggest Loser DOES.NOT.WANT us to see.
Makes me wonder what will be left for his “Presidential Library” — except for maybe all the VHS Tapes of his “sore loser” Rallies?
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You know who else asserted “executive privilege” over government records — he knew would end his presidency, and forever tarnish his legacy?
“We conclude that when the ground for asserting privilege as to subpoenaed materials sought for use in a criminal trial is based only on the generalized interest in confidentiality, it cannot prevail over the fundamental demands of due process of law in the fair administration of criminal justice. The generalized assertion of privilege must yield to the demonstrated, specific need for evidence in a pending criminal trial,” Burger said.
[...]
On July 24, 1974, a unanimous Court (with Justice Rehnquist not taking part due to a prior role in the Nixon administration) ruled against the President [Nixon]. Chief Justice Warren Burger said that the President didn’t have an absolute, unqualified privilege to withhold information.
constitutioncenter.org
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I remember that summer well. I was on my way to University, after graduating “All A’s” Valedictorian of my High School class. The world looked wide open. Nothing but untapped opportunities awaiting me ahead.
AND our long National Nightmare that was Richard (“It’s NOT illegal when the President does it”) Nixon was finally OVER!
Surely America would learn from this terrible (National) Mistake and never let it happen again …
.
.
.
Did I forget to mention — I was a bright-eyed optimist back then.
The grinding years have long since taken the sparkle out of that sheen.
There seems to be some things, that some Americans, persistently refuse to learn:
Like, NO ONE should be Above the Law. Period.
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Here’s to hoping … we don’t make THAT same mistake, all over again.
...
If we do, losing that youthful optimistic attitude, may be the least of our worries.
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