The FBI search of Donald Trump's home is a big deal. When he issued a statement calling the FBI's action a "raid," Trump seemed to confirm the news, noting that "nothing like this has ever happened to a President of the United States before."
This is a big deal for Trump and his critics.
According to reports, the documents are related to the Justice Department's investigation into Trump's alleged removal of classified documents from the White House. The national security of the United States can be damaged by the disclosure of classified material.
The identity of government sources could be made public if the documents were to end up in the wrong hands. It is possible that our methods of collecting information could become known.
Even if you're the former president, you can't leave boxes lying around with government secrets that can be used to kill people.
Trump supporters reacted calmly to the search.
disqualification from public office is brought about by a conviction under a relevant statute. If Trump were to face minimal prison time, he wouldn't be able to serve as president again.
There is a lot of information that we don't know.
The FBI must get a search warrant in order to search a home. The judge needs to find probable cause to believe that evidence of a crime will be found on the premises, even if it's not evidence of a crime.
The agents can use a search warrant to look for the item. If the items to be searched for are documents, agents can look anywhere a document can be kept, even under a bed. The item may be seized if there is any evidence. The agents will take the documents if they are found to have been removed from the White House.
If agents are authorized by a warrant to enter the premises, they are allowed to seize not only the items specified in the warrant, but any other items they can see in plain view. They might be able to get a second warrant if they find documents that show another crime.
If the items they were searching for could have been stored there, the FBI had the right to open the safe. If agents found documents that implicated Trump in an election fraud scheme, they could potentially use that information to get another warrant to seize those documents.
Alex Jones has to face consequences for lying.
There are more things we don't know that we know. The National Archives or Department of Justice may have tried to get the documents back.
The National Archives requested the return of the documents many months ago. The documents were removed by Trump in the beginning. The documents may contain incriminating or harmful information. Trump has access to the Mar-a-Lago residence. Is the seriousness of improper storage affected by that?
Does the warrant authorize evidence of election fraud or was it only about the materials removed from the White House? The search warrant was executed now. Is the investigation going to lead to charges against Trump or others?
The events that follow the search may be larger.
Barbara McQuade is a professor at the University of Michigan Law School and an NBC and MSNBC legal analyst. You can follow her on social media.
The FBI searched Trump's Mar-a-Lago.
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