Last month, the National Archives and Records Administration had to retrieve multiple boxes from Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property after the former president brought official correspondence and other items that were supposed to be turned over to the agency to his personal residence.
As first reported by The Washington Post, the boxes contained correspondence between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, which Trump once referred to as “love letters.” The letters, sent while Trump was attempting to negotiate over North Korea’s use of nuclear weapons, were the subject of much conjecture during his presidency.
The boxes also contained mementos, gifts and other letters from world leaders, including a letter from former President Barack Obama.
Under the Presidential Records Act, correspondence like letters, memos and other official items are supposed to be handed over to the National Archives after the president leaves office. The president is also tasked with ensuring that documents and other records are able to be preserved and maintained.
Anonymous sources said that discussions about transferring documents to the National Archives began last year. Although Trump’s advisers say that there was no ill intent in not turning over the documents, some officials say that such a late transfer is unprecedented for the agency. Sources have also said that Trump has no concern for complying with the Presidential Records Act.
Experts say that Trump’s records act violations are a threat to both presidential transparency and national security. “The only way that a president can really be held accountable long term is to preserve a record about who said what, who did what, what policies were encouraged or adopted, and that is such an important part of the long-term scope of accountability,” presidential historian Lindsay Chrevinsky told The Washington Post.
If the records include information that is critical for national security, Chrevinsky went on, it is important that they are preserved for future administrations to reference.
The National Archives have had their fair share of issues with Trump’s flippant view of document preservation and transparency in the past.
During his presidency, Trump regularly ripped up documents; White House aides often had to laboriously tape papers back together before sending them to the National Archives. Recent reporting has found that this practice was even more widespread than reporting during Trump’s presidency had suggested.
In what experts say is a clear violation of the records act, Trump often left scraps of paper all over – including in the Oval Office, on Air Force One and in his private study in the West Wing. Aides quickly realized that they couldn’t stop Trump from ripping the documents, so they implemented protocols to streamline the process of puzzling the papers back together in attempts to lessen violations of the records act.
However, recent reporting by The Washington Post has also found that Trump officials would often put documents into “burn bags” to be destroyed. Officials would sift through the papers to decide what should be saved and what should be burned; for instance, documents detailing Trump’s efforts to pressure Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, which were recently requested by the January 6 committee, have been destroyed.
“He didn’t want a record of anything,” a former senior Trump official told The Washington Post. “He never stopped ripping things up. Do you really think Trump is going to care about the records act? Come on.”
Help us Prepare for Trump’s Day One
Trump is busy getting ready for Day One of his presidency – but so is Truthout.
Trump has made it no secret that he is planning a demolition-style attack on both specific communities and democracy as a whole, beginning on his first day in office. With over 25 executive orders and directives queued up for January 20, he’s promised to “launch the largest deportation program in American history,” roll back anti-discrimination protections for transgender students, and implement a “drill, drill, drill” approach to ramp up oil and gas extraction.
Organizations like Truthout are also being threatened by legislation like HR 9495, the “nonprofit killer bill” that would allow the Treasury Secretary to declare any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” and strip its tax-exempt status without due process. Progressive media like Truthout that has courageously focused on reporting on Israel’s genocide in Gaza are in the bill’s crosshairs.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to look at hard realities and communicate them to you. We hope that you, like us, can use this information to prepare for what’s to come.
And if you feel uncertain about what to do in the face of a second Trump administration, we invite you to be an indispensable part of Truthout’s preparations.
In addition to covering the widespread onslaught of draconian policy, we’re shoring up our resources for what might come next for progressive media: bad-faith lawsuits from far-right ghouls, legislation that seeks to strip us of our ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and further throttling of our reach on social media platforms owned by Trump’s sycophants.
We’re preparing right now for Trump’s Day One: building a brave coalition of movement media; reaching out to the activists, academics, and thinkers we trust to shine a light on the inner workings of authoritarianism; and planning to use journalism as a tool to equip movements to protect the people, lands, and principles most vulnerable to Trump’s destruction.
We urgently need your help to prepare. As you know, our December fundraiser is our most important of the year and will determine the scale of work we’ll be able to do in 2025. We’ve set two goals: to raise $130,000 in one-time donations and to add 1422 new monthly donors by midnight on December 31.
Today, we’re asking all of our readers to start a monthly donation or make a one-time donation – as a commitment to stand with us on day one of Trump’s presidency, and every day after that, as we produce journalism that combats authoritarianism, censorship, injustice, and misinformation. You’re an essential part of our future – please join the movement by making a tax-deductible donation today.
If you have the means to make a substantial gift, please dig deep during this critical time!
With gratitude and resolve,
Maya, Negin, Saima, and Ziggy