# Why is trump keeping classified documents-- for what purpose does he want them? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [August 29, 2022, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526 "2022-08-29T13:19:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/41 "2022-08-29T17:18:43Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > > [@solost](#): > > > > Sheer laziness / incompetence / stubbornness from trump and his handlers. > > I think this is the answer. Once team Trump realized they fucked up they were under strict orders to never admit wrong-doing, and so by sheer incompetent inertia they landed themselves here. There are several issues with this theory: 1. Trump flew stuff to Mar-a-Lago from the White House. The materials aren’t just stuff that was already there, that he was too lazy to return. (That said, he could have just sent everything in his office in the White House, without any particular review of what it was. But → ) 2. He did, ultimately, return stuff. While we might accept a form of laziness **before** that point, there’s no way to end up with 10+ boxes worth of stuff still sitting around in a room and think, somehow, that you’ve returned everything. It’s like you borrow 20 lions from a guy, give 10 back, and try to profess that you just forgot that there were still some more hanging out. They’re not dormice, you’re going to notice when you’ve got 10 lions roaming about the house - even when it’s a reasonably large house. 12 boxes of stuff is like the size of a couple of couches, you’re not going to fail to notice them. 3. Reporting notes that the documents brought back to the FBI were scattered around the house and in Trump’s bedroom. When executing a search warrant, the officers are held to a reasonableness standard. If they open a box, rifle through the papers, find one Top Secret heading, then they can take the whole box to check more thoroughly later, because it’s reasonable to think that someone would store similar documents in the same box. If you see a single paper on a nightstand and it _doesn’t_ have a classified mark on it and the date on it is 2022, then you _leave it where it is_ because there’s no reasonable argument that it’s relevant to the warrant. So if they didn’t do that - if they _did_ take something from Trump’s nightstand - then that document was clearly pertinent to the warrant. You don’t have as-clear-as-day government documents scattered around the house willy-nilly, up to and including your bedroom, and think that you’ve returned everything. You could try to say something like that he simply couldn’t be bothered to collect and sort stuff but #2 above goes against that. He _did_ return some stuff. He did have collected documents that were stored in a particular room that could be padlocked and, thereby, protected. There’s some sort of logic associated with those documents ending up staying away from the government and staying together, in a pile, in a room. > [@Jas09](#): > > The primary one you hear from the MAGA supporters is: > > The documents were related to the Russia hoax/Durham investigation and Trump kept them because the FBI is covering Obama/Hillary’s tracks and by keeping them he could hold them all accountable and lock them up once he’s POTUS again. Kash Patel is quoted saying (to paraphrase), “He declassified everything about the Durham investigation, **so I went to the National Archives** to get access to them.” Ergo, Trump didn’t have what he needed available. They’re at the National Archives. ---
**Author:** ![SingleMalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/singlemalt/32/3961_2.png) [@SingleMalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SingleMalt)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/42 "2022-08-29T17:22:15Z")
> [@solost](#): > > So my understanding is that trump didn’t run off with boxes of classified docs when he finally left the White House for the last time, he already had the documents at Mar-A-Lago because it had been designated a SCIF (Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility) when trump was President and Mar-A-Lago was basically White House South. When he was no longer President, the SCIF designation was removed from M-A-L, and he should have turned over all the docs than, but he didn’t. Just a point here. Mar-a-Lago wasn’t designated a SCIF; they had a SCIF installed. The SCIF was decommissioned after Trump left office, so any documents there would have been recovered during the decommission. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/43 "2022-08-29T17:51:27Z")
No, but if you know the prosecution can’t articulate a compelling motive, you can still mess with the jury. “This makes no sense, _why_ would he do this?” It’s a bit of a hail mary but maybe it gets you some doubt. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/44 "2022-08-29T17:53:51Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > Trump may have had some of the classified documents at Mar-A-Lago when it had a SCIF, but other documents were taken when he left the White House, as well. > > His actions became willful when he was advised repeatedly that it was illegal for him to keep the documents and he kept them anyway. Moreover, there are credible reports that Trump himself went through all the boxes after being so advised and actively decided what would be returned and more importantly… what wouldn’t. > [@SingleMalt](#): > > Just a point here. Mar-a-Lago wasn’t designated a SCIF; they had a SCIF installed. The SCIF was decommissioned after Trump left office, so any documents there would have been recovered during the decommission. So there’s no possibility of a “forgot to return the rented video” style excuse here; trump and co. are clearly willfully and intentionally keeping these files. ---
**Author:** ![Dobbs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Dobbs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dobbs)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/45 "2022-08-29T17:59:49Z")
> [@SingleMalt](#): > > The SCIF was decommissioned after Trump left office, so any documents there would have been recovered during the decommission. Indeed. A SCIF has a custodian, who is responsible for keeping an inventory of any documents, including any that are destroyed. They would have also noted any that were declassified, and that paper trail would still exist. But does anyone know for sure that there was, in fact, a SCIF at MaL? It would require fairly extensive remodeling for intrusion prevention and detection (they aren’t just rooms with a padlock on the door), and I expect Trump would charge astronomical rent for the space. I remember hearing that his clubs charged the USSS rent for golf carts, and wouldn’t allow them to bring their own. I suspect it would be cheaper and easier to have the SCIF off site, and have a courier carry things in and out. But this is just my speculation. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/46 "2022-08-29T18:07:30Z")
Trump’s history would say that he believes most strongly in **not** creating a paper trail so I think it’s reasonable to believe that he wouldn’t (intentionally) keep evidence of any criminal activities. I wouldn’t be surprised if there used to be more documents at Mar-a-Lago than were ultimately recovered, because a goodly amount has been destroyed. Of course, there’s some chance that he would have been too lazy to destroy stuff _yet_, thinking that he was safe from a search warrant. I would personally guess that it’s likely that materials pertinent to the Trump Organization Finances might have been included and, I would expect, the officers working on those will have been able to request that the filter team look for documents of that style, on the basis that they already had a subpoena out for such materials. Likewise, there might be other similar complicating if there are, for example, unknown sex crime cases open against him or whatever else. To me, it sounds like he was simply storing random documents together, without much logic, other than a desire to hide it - possibly with an eye to destroying it. Our best evidence for this is that Trump immediately claimed - for no particular reason - that [the FBI was planting evidence of crimes in the boxes](https://sports.yahoo.com/trump-accuses-fbi-planting-evidence-135052764.html). So the first type of material is: Stuff that he wanted to destroy but hasn’t gotten around to, yet, because it would require sorting. Which leads us to the second type of material: Stuff that he wants to keep. Among stuff that he wants to keep, I’m sure that some is sentimental but the most likely - that would have been classified and part of his Daily Briefing, would be stuff that is useful for a business man. Perhaps it was a [now-paywalled NYT article that I can’t see](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/03/us/politics/trump-daily-intelligence-briefing.html) but one account that I read noted that Trump took particular interest when there was information that would help businesses. The US could sell the UAE rockets, Israel had cryptographic components, etc. (I don’t know the actual contents - I’m just imagining what things might have been in there) and if we try to think of what papers would be useful to keep, after the fact, for reference then that would certainly be in the running. So on that one, we have independent confirmation that he was interested in a particular class of classified material, we can imagine a fairly clear use, and we don’t need to get particularly conspiratorial. He’s a business man. Having info about different businesses and business opportunities is good. You would want to keep it. Other things that you might want to keep - but which we have no particular evidence for - would be blackmail material. If that existed and has now been recovered by the FBI then we might expect to see people who 1) suddenly and sharply went pro-Trump for no reason several years ago, 2) suddenly becoming less enthusiastic in more recent times, and 3) potentially start having legal trouble, deciding to leave office, and/or having their place searched by the FBI. It might not be fully obvious that this is related to the Trump raid but things of that nature would be expected if that was the sort of thing that Trump was hording. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/47 "2022-08-29T18:19:04Z")
> [@solost](#): > > So there’s no possibility of a “forgot to return the rented video” style excuse here; trump and co. are clearly willfully and intentionally keeping these files. But this is Trump we’re talking about. Sure he’s willing to commit crimes. But the idea that he could plan out a crime seems unlikely. That said, my joke about Sergei may be more true than I realized. Perhaps one of Trump’s minions saw an advantage in hanging on to classified documents and arranged to have them left behind. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/48 "2022-08-29T18:44:52Z")
> [@solost](#): > > So there’s no possibility of a “forgot to return the rented video” style excuse here; trump and co. are clearly willfully and intentionally keeping these files. Oh, it’s Trump, so he may try. But there is video of boxes being moved from place to place in between DOJ contacts advising Trump he was illegally in possession. Remember, he was first advised he was illegally in possession by NARA in late 2020. I refer you to @Northern_Piper’s excellent timeline and summary: > [@FBI Search and Seizure at Trump's Mar-A-Lago Residence (August 8, 2022)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fbi-search-and-seizure-of-trumps-mar-a-lago-residence-08-08-22/969329/1750): > > They do from a law enforcement perspective. When you’re up against a former president, you have to cross every t and dot every i to reduce the suggestions of partisanship in law enforcement which will inevitably follow, so that in the event of charges, that allegation of partisanship does not become a basis for the defendant to challenge it. They also have to follow legal restrictions that do not apply to ordinary situations, such as the access restrictions in the Presidential Records Act an… Some of the stuff was found in Trump’s own closet. And I think that’s why the DOJ asked for the signed declaration from Trump’s attorneys that all items had been returned to NARA custody in early June. At some future trial: Trump: “I forgot I had them!” DOJ: "Here’s a document from NARA to you showing you were advised in late 2020 that you were illegally in possession of certain documents and pursuant to the Presidential Records Act, they must be returned. "Here’s a document showing you were advised in May 2021 of the specific documents we knew were missing and that you illegally possessed. "Here’s a document from late 2021 that shows you were advised NARA would be making a referral to DOJ for your failure to return these documents. "Here’s a document from April 29, 2022, that shows you were advised specifically which documents were classified and which you continued to illegally possess. "Here’s a letter we sent to your attorney, Evan Corcoran, on May 10, 2022, explaining why you had no basis to assert executive privilege over the documents you continued to illegally possess. "Here’s a copy of a grand jury subpoena dated May 11, 2022, demanding that you return return all documents with classified markings that you continued to illegally possess. "Here’s a copy of the written statement sent from your attorney, Christina Bobb, to us on June 3, 2022, stating that you had returned all classified documents, in compliance with the earlier-issued grand jury subpoena. "Here’s a copy of the letter we sent you on June 8, 2022, asking that the document storage room be secured pending further action in this matter. "Here’s video of boxes we told you to lock up in the basement pending further action being moved from the basement into your private quarters in your personal closet. "Here’s a summary of the additional items we found that fall under the Presidential Records Act and which remained illegally in your possession, until we finally got them back on August 8, 2022. "Here are classified documents we took from your private quarters on August 8, 2022. We tested them for fingerprint evidence and found your prints all over them. “Still want to go with the, ‘I forgot I had them!’ defense?” ---
**Author:** ![Win\_Place\_Show](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/win_place_show/32/13469_2.png) [@Win\_Place\_Show](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Win_Place_Show)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/49 "2022-08-29T19:12:00Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > Perhaps it was a [now-paywalled NYT article that I can’t see](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/03/us/politics/trump-daily-intelligence-briefing.html) I can try sharing it as a gift link, since I do have a subscription with them. Hopefully this works. > **[To Woo a Skeptical Trump, Intelligence Chiefs Talk Economics Instead of Spies...](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/03/us/politics/trump-daily-intelligence-briefing.html?unlocked_article_code=eP4TWWpquvYUliHsgsJ90WIv4pdrLktzNlJSbRZXW1GykslQIkDnI1zgGKbfhMCpg7z1FmFpxbd1xwHzSUoVuAWKA3ksO_mntCy2n9tTcrotOg6_2D91Far8XojfG1OdC4dt40knVKpffX9vUhm0wlMUYN3MGz9spa3pKFrxrppYsaG6U07wdocC8EbdSlKPR8_LDWvgAMDMDRvNq-LtNjtNHRxwHoJwfA7-vzJl4cbGb2frteGOFNBWnfk5FOJUMG1ThqJiXYeel4c06NjUzD9Z8K8Fsdq7pVsfr6ryJyQ0a00PCFenCj2rLHxUWcV-nlgQMShvF_MPxvoVitw0ppZLSFhX3VguVD86KFaykg&smid=share-url)** > > While the professionals do not criticize Mr. Trump’s focus, they question whether those interests are crowding out intelligence on threats like terrorism. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/50 "2022-08-29T19:12:00Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > “Still want to go with the, ‘I forgot I had them!’ defense?” “Yes.” ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/51 "2022-08-29T19:13:06Z")
LOL! True, sadly. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/52 "2022-08-29T19:17:37Z")
Well, really, [“I forgot armed robbery was illegal”](https://snltranscripts.jt.org/77/77imono.phtml) is about the only defense he has here. Of all the various reasons posited for Trump keeping this stuff, “He wanted to keep the love letter from Kim Jong-Un” and “He just forgot” are the only ones that aren’t obviously criminal on their face, and the first only applies to that one letter. Convincing people to believe “I forgot” is his only shot at winning if this goes to trial. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/53 "2022-08-29T19:18:10Z")
> [@Win\_Place\_Show](#): > > I can try sharing it as a gift link, since I do have a subscription with them. Hopefully this works. Close to my recollection but not quite as exact. Good enough to demonstrate my point, though. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/54 "2022-08-29T19:18:45Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > Well, really, [“I forgot armed robbery was illegal”](https://snltranscripts.jt.org/77/77imono.phtml) is about the only defense he has here. Of all the various reasons posited for Trump keeping this stuff, “He wanted to keep the love letter from Kim Jong-Un” and “He just forgot” are the only ones that aren’t obviously criminal on their face, and the first only applies to that one letter. > > Convincing people to believe “I forgot” is his only shot at winning if this goes to trial. - Or getting one of his disciples on the jury. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/55 "2022-08-29T19:21:27Z")
Moderating: I think we’re hijacking this thread away from its intended topic. I realize I started it by saying the reasons why Trump kept the documents is beside the point, but let’s all stop now. @solost is entitled to keep the thread on the track for which they intended it. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/56 "2022-08-29T19:53:04Z")
Sorry if this has already been posted: > ---
**Author:** ![Akaj](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/akaj/32/145_2.png) [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/57 "2022-08-29T20:38:39Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > 8/3/2019: Trump issued a request for a list of top US spies Wow, I don’t remember this. A request of whom? Was it granted? ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/58 "2022-08-29T20:39:58Z")
From the article: The Trump administration is taking inventory of many of America’s top spies, The Daily Beast has learned. The White House recently asked the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) for a list of all its employees at the federal government’s top pay scale who have worked there for 90 days or more, according to two sources familiar with the request. > **[White House Asks for List of Top Spies During Intelligence Shakeup](https://www.thedailybeast.com/white-house-asks-for-list-of-top-intel-officials-amid-intelligence-shakeup)** > > It’s unclear what the White House will do with the list. People on it may be eligible to temporarily lead the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. ---
**Author:** ![Frazzled](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frazzled/32/3368_2.png) [@Frazzled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frazzled)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/59 "2022-08-29T20:41:11Z")
Trump is driven by Narcissism, Power, and Wealth - so whatever reason he has to keep the documents is related to those: 1. Having a SCIF, even if its decommissioned is a huge status symbol that appeals to his Narcissism and is a reminder of the power he had as President. 2. Mentioned above - but knowledge is power and power is money. He wouldn’t have to trade secrets directly but he has access to secret information that creates an edge in any business dealings he is undertaking or any that his allies are taking part in. He could use any compromising information to serve his own purposes as well. 3. Trade secrets to Trump friendly foreign leaders to get them to fund hackers or pay for other means and information to win the upcoming election. 4. Trade secrets for more secrets. The ultimate in “show me yours and I’ll show you mine”. ---
**Author:** ![Akaj](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/akaj/32/145_2.png) [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2022, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526/60 "2022-08-29T20:51:19Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > From the article: > > The Trump administration is taking inventory of many of America’s top spies, The Daily Beast has learned. The White House recently asked the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) for a list of all its employees at the federal government’s top pay scale who have worked there for 90 days or more, according to two sources familiar with the request. > > [White House Asks for List of Top Spies During Intelligence Shakeup](https://www.thedailybeast.com/white-house-asks-for-list-of-top-intel-officials-amid-intelligence-shakeup) That headline is misleading. A “list of all its employees at the federal government’s top pay scale who have worked there for 90 days or more” isn’t “top spies.” It’s top candidates to replace someone who wasn’t Trumpy enough – which is odious, but not nearly as treasonous. I wonder if such information might even be public record. Still, the timing of the request so soon after the Putin meeting smells fishy. And I eagerly await someone connecting Trump’s activities (even if not necessarily this one) with the CIA losing so many informants. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-trump-keeping-classified-documents-for-what-purpose-does-he-want-them/970526.md?page=4)