Former White House Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney alleged Thursday that the individual informing the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) about the classified White House documents is somebody “very close” to former President Donald Trump.
A report circulated that sources told the FBI there may have been classified documents stored in the 15 boxes of documents inside Trump’s private residence, Mar-a-Lago, two months prior to the Monday raid on the former president’s home, the Wall Street Journal reported. Mulvaney, a former Trump administration official, said there are just six to eight people with the sort of knowledge given to the FBI regarding the reportedly classified documents.
“I didn’t even know there was a safe at Mar-a-Lago and I was the chief of staff for 15 months,” Mulvaney said. “So this had to be someone who was handling things on [the] day to day, who knew where the documents were. It would be somebody very close to the president. My guess is there’s probably six or eight people who had that kind of information. I don’t know the people on the inside circle these days, so I can’t give any names of folks who come to mind.”
CNN host Brianna Keilar asked Mulvaney if he believes Trump should release the receipt of everything taken in the seizure in order to be transparent with the American public. (RELATED: White House Was Likely Briefed Before FBI Raided Mar-A-Lago, Ex-FBI Agent Says)
“I think he probably should, I think I just made that point, is that I think the best way to proceed here—” he began.
“But how is it possible for him to call the DOJ [Department of Justice] or for supporters of his to say ‘yeah, the DOJ needs to come out and say something’ without acknowledging that point you’re making which is that he should probably come out and put this information out,” Keilar said.
“Wouldn’t it be great if everybody did,” Mulvaney responded.
He added the country’s institutions are “way beyond the course of business” by raiding the home of a former president. He then called on Trump and the DOJ to “come forward” with the documents disclosing the objects seized and the search warrant issued by Judge Bruce Reinhart.
The search stemmed from a request to Trump’s associates by the National Archives and Records Administration to hand over what they believed to be missing records, according to the Wall Street Journal. The Archives received 15 boxes of documents from Mar-a-Lago in January, containing some “classified national security information,” sparking an investigation by the DOJ.
Trump and his associates have said they were cooperating with the DOJ during the investigation.
“I appreciate the job you’re doing,” Trump said, according to the Wall Street Journal. “Anything you need, let us know.”
Mulvaney suggested the DOJ and FBI have presented a double standard toward Republicans, a belief held by several in the Republican Party and among some Democrats who have accused the raid of being politically motivated.