There are a lot of questions surrounding the federal indictment of former President Donald Trump, which alleges that after leaving the White House, Trump kept secret national defense information he was not legally allowed to possess. Questions such as: Did Trump, as president, have the authority to decide what to keep, and what to give to the National Archives, after leaving office? And just how sensitive were the documents he kept? And even if Trump lacked the specific authority, and the papers were sensitive, has the Justice Department overreached by charging Trump with 37 felonies?

Why did Trump do it?

Byron York is chief political correspondent for the Washington Examiner, a Fox News contributor, and host of The Byron York Show podcast. He has covered the Bush, Obama, Trump, and now Biden administrations, as well as Congress and each presidential campaign since 2000. He is the author of two books -- The Vast Left Wing Conspiracy, an account of liberal activism in the 2004 election, and Obsession, an account of Democratic efforts to remove President Donald Trump from office. Formerly White House correspondent for National Review, his work has been published in the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Atlantic Monthly, Foreign Affairs, and the New Republic. A graduate of the University of Alabama and the University of Chicago, he lives in Washington, DCSubscribe to the newsletter here: https://newsletters.washingtonexaminer.com/newsletters/daily-memo/

News

Politics

News Commentary

The political world is consumed with the fighting going on after Hamas's attack on Israel. How could the vaunted Israeli intelligence services have been so surprised? How extensive will Israel's retaliation be? Will the conflict spread?

The new speaker and Ukraine

What is President Joe Biden's biggest liability as he runs for reelection? Republicans could give you a lot of answers, but the most important is the president's age. He's 80 now and would be 82 upon beginning a second term and 86 at the end of it. He looks and sounds every minute of his age. Having such an elderly chief executive is unprecedented in American history.

Trump throws Biden a lifeline on the age problem

On Feb. 7, 2022, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), a member of the Judiciary Committee, wrote a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland. It was about the case of Montez Lee, a Rochester, Minnesota, man sentenced to 10 years in prison for setting a fire that killed a man during the Black Lives Matter riot in Minneapolis.

'A riot is the language of the unheard'

Let's say you hate Donald Trump and really, really, really don't want him to become president of the United States again. How do you prevent that? Well, most would agree the best way would be to defeat him electorally, either in the Republican primaries or in the 2024 general election.

Trump's enemies come up with new scheme to take him out

The first debate of the Republican presidential primaries is now just days away. There is still uncertainty about who will take part — there have been reports that former President Donald Trump, who leads second-place Gov. Ron DeSantis by 40 points, will skip the event. But Trump could always change his mind.

Why did Trump do it?

Download our free app to listen on your phone