“O, what portents are these?” demands a deceptively observant character in “Henry IV.” Former President Donald Trump must be wondering much the same, after FBI agents searched his home at Mar-a-Lago on Monday. The rest of the country could use some answers too.
Trump himself first detailed the raid on social media. “Nothing like this has ever happened to a president of the United States before,” he said, accurately. “After working and cooperating with the relevant government agencies, this unannounced raid on my home was not necessary or appropriate,” he continued. Characteristically, he then seemed to reveal more than intended: “They even broke into my safe!”
The contents of that safe — and the boxes FBI agents were seen removing from the residence — may well prove explosive. Any such search would’ve required a federal agent to present an application to a judge under oath showing probable cause that there was evidence of a crime on the premises. The judge would’ve had to agree. FBI Director Christopher Wray, a Trump appointee, and the highest levels of the Justice Department, likely including Attorney General Merrick Garland, would’ve had to sign off. Everyone involved must have grasped the gravity of what was about to unfold.
