FILE - In this Dec. 12, 2020, file photo President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington before boarding Marine One. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
SALT LAKE CITY — On Monday, news broke of the FBI searching Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, Florida home. The search warrant was executed as part of an investigation into the handling of presidential documents, including classified documents, that may have been taken from the White House.
Former U.S. Attorney for Utah, John Huber described the search as bold and unprecedented and added that there is a lot on the line following the raid on Mr. Trump’s estate.
“Now you can take a bull in a China shop and back out, and maybe not damage the inventory,” Huber said. “But it’s likely that you’re going to damage a lot of what’s in that store.
And this aggressive tactic taken by the DOJ [Department of Justice], is in stark contrast to inquiries and scrutiny in prior administrations.”
Huber said that the 15 boxes seized by the FBI might include content related to the violent January 6, 2021 protests at the U.S. Capitol. But, that’s not a foregone conclusion. He also noted that the information may not prove anything illegal at all.
Former FBI Special Agent Greg Rogers told Jeff Caplan’s Afternoon News that the search is likely related to the January 6 investigation. And he said that the search could backfire on the FBI.
“Unfortunately, I think it just bolsters the opinion of half of the country now that the FBI has become political. I’m saying that as someone who has spent 30 years in the FBI.”
A Gallup poll of 1,000 people, measuring public sentiment of U.S. government agencies, found the FBI’s job approval rating had fallen to 44% in 2021. The agency said that represented a 13% decrease in such approval between 2019 and 2021.
Rogers continued, “Serving a warrant at a former president’s house when it’s completely unnecessary, I think, this is doing irreparable harm to an organization that I truly love.”
Jeff Caplan’s Afternoon News can be heard weekdays from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on KSL NewsRadio.