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Politics April 06,2024 | Independence Journal Editorial Team

Lawsuit: DOD Concealed Obama-Era Order Favorable To President Trump

On Thursday, America First Legal (AFL) filed a lawsuit against the Department of Defense (DOD) in Washington, DC, federal district court. The case argues the DOD has unlawfully withheld records related to the Presidential Information Technology Committee (PITC). That organization was established by an executive order issued by Barack Obama for the stated purpose of enhancing the informational resources available to the president.

The complaint filed in the case is founded upon a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) inquiry submitted by AFL in January, which the organization claims could potentially clear former President Donald Trump in his ongoing classified documents case. The crux of AFL’s argument is that the PITC could infer that the President has the authority to control all information he receives, which might suggest Trump believed he was within his legal rights to retain the documents in question.

AFL Vice President Dan Epstein said, “America First Legal’s suit today raises significant legal questions the Biden Administration must confront.” He elaborated on how the PITC directly complicates the indictment against President Trump about his retention of presidential documents. The criminal charges in that case appear to have overlooked the power of classification and control of documents provided to the president by the PITC.

Moreover, AFL argues that if information systems created by the PITC preserved records that Trump allegedly destroyed, the accusations against him might lack foundation. This point further intensifies the scrutiny over Special Counsel Jack Smith’s prosecution of Trump, especially if the information from the PITC network formed the basis of the case without being disclosed to Trump or his legal team.

The legal battleground set by AFL against the DOD not only seeks to unveil the operational secrecy of the PITC but also challenges the narrative established by the Special Counsel and the National Archives. By asserting that the Obama-era initiative could justify the actions of former President Trump regarding document retention, AFL ignites a debate on the boundaries of presidential authority and information control.

In a statement, Epstein elaborated on the potential outcomes of the lawsuit, indicating that if the court deems PITC records as agency records and not presidential ones, it would call into question the National Archives’ decision to refer Trump to the Department of Justice, a decision based on the assumption that Trump improperly removed presidential records.

By challenging the concealment of documents related to the PITC, AFL seeks to protect President Trump’s interests and assert a broader principle — the president has expansive control over the information he receives and retains.

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