The Washington Post claimed on Tuesday that one of the top-secret documents that the FBI seized from former US president Donald Trump’s Florida home described a foreign power’s nuclear capability and military defenses.
Some of the documents discovered in Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence, according to the newspaper’s unidentified sources familiar with the case, were so highly classified that only the president and cabinet or near-cabinet level officials would be authorized to grant other federal officials access to them.
However, the documents did not reveal the names of countries whose defenses and nuclear capabilities were mentioned.
The Post claims that rather than a standard top-secret clearance, such materials require specific clearances based on a need-to-know basis.
No information was provided regarding the location of the extremely sensitive material or the level of security it was found within the house, which also acts as a private member’s club.
Trump is coming under increasing legal pressure with the Department of Justice (DOJ) claiming that top secret documents were “likely concealed” to thwart an FBI investigation into Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified materials.
In a government court filing, it was stated that when agents searched the Mar-a-Lago resort on August 8, they discovered information so sensitive that “even the FBI counter-intelligence personnel and DOJ attorneys conducting the review required additional clearances before they were permitted to review certain documents.”
The FBI raid followed a review of “highly sensitive” documents that Trump, after months of wrangling with the National Archives and Records Administration, eventually turned up to authorities in January. The 184 documents with the designations “confidential,” “secret,” or “top secret” were discovered in the 15 boxes that Trump turned up.
Trump’s attorney eventually turned over an additional 38 classified documents after being prodded by the FBI and offered “sworn certification” that they were the final pieces of information.
But the FBI went on to uncover “multiple sources of evidence” showing classified documents remained at Mar-a-Lago.
