Alaska Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski issued statements concerning the Justice Department’s indictment of former President Donald Trump, an indictment that was unsealed on Friday — the first ever indictment of a former president. Rep. Mary Peltola issued no statement.
Trump had announced on Thursday that he had, indeed, been indicted, but the Justice Department remained quiet until unsealing the 38-count indictment, which says Trump mishandled classified documents that contained involving sensitive nuclear program information and the nation’s possible military vulnerabilities, and that he obstructed the government when it tried to reclaim the documents.
The indictment developed after a raid of Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s resort home in Florida last August, where the FBI discovered many boxes of material, some marked classified. Trump was not in the state of Florida at the time of the raid, and watched it on video from the closed circuit cameras in the building.
The indictment contains pictures from throughout areas of Trump’s home, where documents had been stored in a ballroom and in a bathroom. Eventually, the boxes had been moved to a ground-floor storage room that was accessible from outside.
In December 2021, a Trump aide found boxes with their contents spilled on the floor of the storage room. One document was marked “SECRET//REL TO USA, FVEY,” which means it can only be released within an intelligence matrix known as Five Eyes.
Murkowski said, “As I’ve stated before, no one is above the law but every American is innocent until proven guilty. Still, the charges in this case are quite serious and cannot be casually dismissed. Mishandling classified documents is a federal crime because it can expose national secrets, as well as the sources and methods they were obtained through. The unlawful retention and obstruction of justice related to classified documents are also criminal matters. Anyone found guilty – whether an analyst, a former president, or another elected or appointed official – should face the same set of consequences.”
Sen. Dan Sullivan said, “The worst thing for our country is for Americans to start to believe that the Justice Department and FBI provide two tiers of justice, and that the indictment of a former president and current candidate for the White House is unprecedented and will almost certainly do lasting damage to our polarized nation.
“The American people know that for years Joe Biden stored classified documents in his garage and that Hillary Clinton mishandled classified emails stored on her private server in her home. But with this Justice Department there seems to be far more interest in pursuing former President Trump – President Biden’s chief political rival – than others.
“Equality before the law is a fundamental tenet of our republic. The Biden administration is shoving our country into dangerous territory that is eroding trust in critical institutions of our government.”
The indictment was voted on by a grand jury in the Southern District of Florida, where Trump will be arraigned on Tuesday.
“The men and women of the United States intelligence community and our armed forces dedicate their lives to protecting our nation and its people. Our laws that protect national defense information are critical to the safety and security of the United States and they must be enforced. Violations of those laws put our country at risk,” said Special Prosecutor Jack Smith of the Department of Justice.
“Adherence to the rule of law is a bedrock principle of the Department of Justice. And our nation’s commitment to the rule of law sets an example for the world. We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone. Applying those laws. Collecting facts. That’s what determines the outcome of an investigation. Nothing more. Nothing less,” he said.
“The prosecutors in my office are among the most talented and experienced in the Department of Justice. They have investigated this case hewing to the highest ethical standards. And they will continue to do so as this case proceeds.”
Trump is a candidate for president and is already facing state charges in New York for a separate matter involving hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels. According to Morning Consult, Trump enjoys 56% of the Republican electorate’s support, in the most recent polling from last week, with his closest competitor, Gov. Ron DeSantis, polling with 22% support.
