WEBVTT 00:02.433 --> 00:05.000 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% This week, former President Donald Trump had to endure a number of legal challenges. On Wednesday, 00:07.533 --> 00:10.433 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the state is suing the former president and his 00:13.000 --> 00:15.600 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% three eldest children for fraud. The civil lawsuit alleges Trump and senior management at the Trump 00:18.066 --> 00:20.900 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% Organization fraudulently inflated the value of his real estate assets for financial benefit. 00:22.266 --> 00:25.133 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% The A.G.'s office is requesting that Trump, Don Jr., Eric, 00:25.133 --> 00:29.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% and Ivanka all be barred from borrowing money or conducting business in the state. 00:29.400 --> 00:34.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% They would also have to pay back the $250 million they allegedly obtained illegally. 00:36.466 --> 00:40.133 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% James also warned her investigation may lead to criminal charges for the former president. 00:42.200 --> 00:45.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Letitia James: We believe the conduct alleged in this action also violates federal 00:47.033 --> 00:50.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% criminal law, including issuing false statements to financial institutions and 00:52.900 --> 00:57.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% bank fraud. And we are referring those criminal violations that we have uncovered to the United 00:58.933 --> 01:03.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% States attorney for the Southern District of New York and the Internal Revenue Service. 01:05.666 --> 01:08.700 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor: In an interview with FOX News, former President Trump responded to the charges. 01:10.633 --> 01:14.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Donald Trump: She campaigned on it four years ago. It was a vicious campaign. 01:14.100 --> 01:17.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And she just talked about Trump and we're going to indict him, we're going to get him. 01:17.733 --> 01:21.766 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% This was just a continuation of a witch-hunt that 01:21.766 --> 01:24.666 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% began when I came down the escalator at Trump Tower. 01:24.666 --> 01:29.666 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor: And also on Wednesday, an appeals court ruled the Justice Department can 01:31.566 --> 01:34.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% resume reviewing classified documents seized from Trump's Mar-a-Lago home. 01:34.800 --> 01:37.533 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% This all comes as a special master appointed to 01:37.533 --> 01:41.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% review the files has given Trump until next Friday to back up his claims that 01:41.966 --> 01:46.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% he declassified the documents and that the FBI planted evidence in the search. 01:46.100 --> 01:49.633 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% Joining me to discuss this and more, Peter Baker, 01:49.633 --> 01:53.466 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% the chief White House correspondent for The New York Times and co-author of the 01:53.466 --> 01:58.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% new book "The Divider," Hugo Lowell, a congressional reporter for The Guardian, 02:00.900 --> 02:04.066 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% and Vivian Salama, national security reporter for The Wall Street Journal. And joining me here in 02:04.066 --> 02:08.933 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% studio, just the two of us, Nancy Cordes, the chief White House correspondent for CBS News. 02:08.933 --> 02:10.966 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% So, thank you all for being here you go. 02:10.966 --> 02:13.300 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Hugo, it's your first time on "Washington Week," so I'm going to start with you, also, 02:13.300 --> 02:16.533 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% of course, because of your expertise on all of these legal challenges. 02:16.533 --> 02:19.000 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% When you look at the problems that -- the legal 02:19.000 --> 02:21.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% problems that former President Trump is facing, just looking at this week, 02:21.766 --> 02:25.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% what do you think are possibly the most serious right now and in the long term? 02:25.900 --> 02:28.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Hugo Lowell, Congressional Reporter, The Guardian: I mean, the two charges, 02:28.900 --> 02:31.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% the potential charges that came up this week, I think, are really significant, 02:31.833 --> 02:36.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% both the New York state A.G. civil suit, but also the DOJ's criminal investigation into his 02:39.466 --> 02:43.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% mishandling of classified documents which were kind of stashed around at Mar-a-Lago. 02:43.966 --> 02:48.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% I think they're both equally quite potent. I mean, if you look at the state A.G. suit, 02:50.266 --> 02:53.000 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% that would really end the Trump Organization in its current form, 02:53.000 --> 02:57.966 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% right? I mean, it would permanently bar Trump and his adult children from holding executive office 03:00.066 --> 03:03.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% in any company in New York. And that would basically end the family real estate empire. 03:03.700 --> 03:07.733 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% And, of course, now that there's a referral to the Southern District of New York, there's potential 03:07.733 --> 03:12.733 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% federal charges. But the fact that the DOJ has now regained access to those 100 documents marked 03:14.700 --> 03:18.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% classified in that Mar-a-Lago investigation is also really significant, because that's the 03:18.166 --> 03:23.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% primary evidence when they're investigating the potential willful retention of national 03:25.733 --> 03:28.000 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% defense information and the obstruction of justice charges that are really on Trump's doorstep now. 03:28.000 --> 03:32.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And I think the combination of those two really were a double whammy for him this week. 03:32.133 --> 03:34.366 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor: There's -- that is definitely a double whammy. 03:34.366 --> 03:35.933 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% And, Peter, I want to come to you. First, 03:35.933 --> 03:38.866 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% congratulations on your new book with your wife, Susan. 03:40.833 --> 03:42.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% In your book "The Divider," you conclude that Trump -- quote -- "emerged from a 03:42.933 --> 03:45.700 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% seven-million vote defeat, two impeachments, 03:45.700 --> 03:49.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% and the January 6 insurrection as the dominant force in the Republican Party." 03:49.900 --> 03:54.333 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% When you look at all of the reporting that you did on how Trump operates, how does that connect to 03:54.333 --> 03:59.300 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% the legal challenges that he's facing right now, and the fact that he's accused of fraud and of, 04:01.366 --> 04:04.433 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% of course, allegedly unfairly and illegally taking these classified documents to his home? 04:06.466 --> 04:08.466 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% Peter Baker, White House Correspondent, The New York Times: Yes, it's rather extraordinary, 04:08.466 --> 04:11.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% right, that, through all these troubles, he actually seems to be perfectly healthy 04:11.633 --> 04:14.500 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% within the Republican Party, that he still has such a strong base there. 04:14.500 --> 04:18.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Look, what's really interesting, in the through line in our book "The Divider," what we saw 04:18.633 --> 04:23.500 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% again and again was a president who tried to bend reality to shape what he wanted it to be, right? 04:23.500 --> 04:27.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And this is the heart of what Letitia James is accusing him of in these -- in this lawsuit, 04:27.633 --> 04:31.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% that, basically, he makes up facts to suit whatever his interests are at the moment. 04:31.133 --> 04:35.933 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% I want to sell -- you think my apartment is only 10,000 square feet? I'm telling you, it's 30,000 04:35.933 --> 04:39.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% square feet. You think it's only worth X? I'm going to tell you, it's worth 10 times that. 04:39.233 --> 04:44.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Whatever facts he tried to put into the public space he insists are really and he insists that 04:46.233 --> 04:51.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% people bend to his desires. We saw that in his presidency, from day one, when he told us there 04:51.033 --> 04:54.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% were larger crowd sizes at his inauguration than ever in history, which wasn't true, 04:54.833 --> 04:58.666 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% all the way to the end, when he told us the election was stolen, which also wasn't true. 04:58.666 --> 05:02.633 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% So, this is a through line, I think. But you're right. He continues to be very strong among 05:02.633 --> 05:07.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Republicans, maybe not quite as strong as he was. There may be some fatigue factor setting 05:07.000 --> 05:10.300 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% in. And it depends on where these investigations go. But what he has done successfully -- this 05:10.300 --> 05:14.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% is why we called the book "The Divider" -- is to make this about dividing the country, 05:14.100 --> 05:17.566 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% by telling his base they're out to get me because they're out to get you. 05:17.566 --> 05:20.500 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% That's been his successful approach now for five, six years. 05:20.500 --> 05:23.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor: And, Hugo, I want to come back to you when you're -- when 05:23.033 --> 05:27.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% we're thinking of -- Peter's laying out sort of the approach that Trump has. 05:27.000 --> 05:31.433 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% There -- it's a two-part question about the future. One, if Letitia James is successful, 05:31.433 --> 05:35.200 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% can't he just move his businesses to Florida? And then how important 05:35.200 --> 05:38.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% is the criminal referral that she's talking about, even if he can move his businesses? 05:38.200 --> 05:41.400 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% Hugo Lowell: Well, he can try move his businesses. 05:41.400 --> 05:45.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% I think the -- I think what Letitia James was saying at her press conference, 05:45.100 --> 05:49.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% and kind of we spoke to her team afterwards, is that, certainly, his business empire in New York 05:49.600 --> 05:54.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% would be at an end. And he can still move his businesses to Florida, but he wouldn't be able 05:54.000 --> 05:58.133 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% to do any sort of business dealings in New York. He still couldn't get any commercial real estate. 05:58.133 --> 06:03.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% If he wanted to have an outpost there, he couldn't get any sort of loans. But I think 06:05.466 --> 06:07.000 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% the fact that that referral has gone out to the Southern District kind of complicates things, 06:07.000 --> 06:09.566 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% even if he wanted to move to somewhere like Florida, 06:09.566 --> 06:13.866 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% because then he has to answer kind of federal charges if Bragg's office decides to investigate. 06:15.900 --> 06:18.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% I mean, bank fraud is the referral that's been made to the Southern District of New 06:18.833 --> 06:23.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% York. That's really serious. I mean, that's a potential 30-year -- maximum 30-year jail 06:23.333 --> 06:28.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% sentence if he's convicted on something like that. And as kind of Peter mentions, the 06:30.333 --> 06:34.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% 11,000 to 30,000 square feet, that gaps in valuations, I mean, either your apartment is 06:35.733 --> 06:37.700 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% 11,000 square feet or it's 30,000 square feet. It's one or the other. 06:37.700 --> 06:40.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And if you're using that to make material misrepresentations to financial institutions, 06:40.800 --> 06:43.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% I mean, that's as clear-cut as it gets. And I think that's what's 06:43.800 --> 06:45.866 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% going to kind of cause him problems down the line. 06:45.866 --> 06:48.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor: And, Nancy, talking about sort of former President Trump, 06:48.833 --> 06:50.900 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% we have to talk about his response. 06:50.900 --> 06:54.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% He went on FOX News, but he also went online and wrote this about New York 06:54.700 --> 06:57.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Attorney General Letitia James. He said: "Another witch-hunt by a racist attorney 06:57.933 --> 07:02.566 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% general. She's a fraud who campaigned on a get-Trump platform" -- end quote. 07:03.733 --> 07:06.300 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% What do you make of Trump's response, 07:06.300 --> 07:09.400 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% given sort of what we know about who he is and what -- how serious these legal challenges are? 07:09.400 --> 07:10.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Nancy Cordes, CBS News Chief White House Correspondent: Well, I mean, 07:10.600 --> 07:12.466 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% some of the claims are laughable, right? 07:12.466 --> 07:16.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The fact that he can declassify documents with his mind, it's obviously not true. 07:19.533 --> 07:24.533 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% But it speaks, Democrats would say, to the increasing desperation of a man who is kind of 07:26.933 --> 07:30.533 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% running out of excuses, and certainly is running right up against the special master, who his team 07:32.633 --> 07:37.200 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% asked for, who is asking very basic questions, like, did you declassify these documents? Who saw 07:39.166 --> 07:41.300 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% you declassify them? When did you declassify them? What process did you go through? 07:41.300 --> 07:45.666 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And his legal team is not providing answers. This is all bumping up, of course, 07:47.633 --> 07:52.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% against the reality of a midterm election and a former president who is suddenly becoming a 07:54.100 --> 07:57.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% much bigger issue in that midterm election than a lot of Republicans would have hoped. 07:59.766 --> 08:02.400 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% Yes, as Peter pointed out, he's got his stalwart supporters who are going to be with him no matter 08:02.400 --> 08:07.100 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% what. But he is a turnoff to independents. And what is happening for him, not just in Florida, 08:09.533 --> 08:13.266 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% but now in New York and all the legal challenges he's facing, are propelling him into the spotlight 08:15.333 --> 08:18.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% at a time when Republicans would vastly prefer for the economy to be the spotlight in the midterm 08:21.066 --> 08:23.133 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% elections, particularly with some of the big drops in the stock market that we saw this week. 08:23.133 --> 08:25.133 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor Certainly. 08:25.133 --> 08:28.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And, Vivian, to get at, of course, now the Justice Department case that 08:28.833 --> 08:33.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% you have been covering very closely, the Justice Department won some big 08:33.000 --> 08:38.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% wins this week. You have them winning the appeal. You also have a lower court now 08:40.033 --> 08:43.566 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% amending the appointment of the special master, saying -- taking out the classified documents. 08:45.266 --> 08:47.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% What is the sort of significance of these developments, these legal blows, 08:47.633 --> 08:49.633 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% as we put it, for former President Trump? 08:49.633 --> 08:51.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Vivian Salama, The Wall Street Journal: Well, they're obviously very significant, 08:51.733 --> 08:55.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% in the fact that the Justice Department can now continue its investigation without 08:55.966 --> 09:00.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% having to worry, A, about someone who is not legitimately qualified to be looking at such 09:02.900 --> 09:06.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% highly classified documents, to be looking at them specifically, the Trump team lawyers. 09:06.033 --> 09:11.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% They were saying that even some officials at DOJ have not even gotten the proper 09:12.933 --> 09:16.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% classification that's needed, the proper -- the proper classification that they need to 09:16.200 --> 09:21.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% be able to look at those documents. And so it is a really intricate process that obviously 09:21.166 --> 09:25.800 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% goes to the heart of grave national security interests, according to the Department of Justice. 09:25.800 --> 09:30.166 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And so that is obviously a win for them. But, more broadly, it's interesting to see 09:32.633 --> 09:35.900 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% that the federal courts are essentially going and saying that this is a matter that cannot continue, 09:37.833 --> 09:42.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% as far as the president going on and saying that he has declassified something at whim. 09:43.600 --> 09:45.633 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% Obviously, there are very technical issues 09:47.666 --> 09:50.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% that the president has been citing as far as his ability to declassify. And this is 09:50.866 --> 09:54.466 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% something that the Biden administration is definitely going to be looking at in the 09:54.466 --> 09:58.133 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% coming months, because presidents do have a lot of discretion when it comes to declassification. 09:58.133 --> 10:02.500 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% But, at the end of the day, the U.S. Court of Appeals, the 11th Circuit, 10:02.500 --> 10:06.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% said, you know what? Prove it. You have to prove that you did something 10:06.333 --> 10:10.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% to declassify this. You can't just go out there and say: I declassified all of this. 10:10.233 --> 10:15.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% One last point, Yamiche. Remember that all of this was brought on by the former 10:15.033 --> 10:20.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% president himself. None of these issues would have come to light. The DOJ would 10:22.066 --> 10:25.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% have prevented a lot of these details from coming to light and going into the public had 10:27.933 --> 10:31.500 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% President Trump not actually gone after them and sued following the search of Mar-a-Lago. 10:33.433 --> 10:36.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And, so, so many of these details that we now know are coming and being 10:36.333 --> 10:40.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% exposed to the public only because of that lawsuit and because of the 10:40.233 --> 10:43.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% fact that there was so much political tension around this particular case. 10:43.966 --> 10:45.500 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% Nancy Cordes: Yes. Yes. 10:45.500 --> 10:46.700 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% Vivian Salama: And so then we're seeing it litigated in public. 10:46.700 --> 10:48.866 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% Yamiche Alcindor: Nancy, you wanted to... 10:48.866 --> 10:50.966 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Nancy Cordes: And I think it's really important, in addition to what Vivian is 10:50.966 --> 10:55.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% saying, to point out that, even if he were able to produce some kind of proof that he 10:55.533 --> 11:00.166 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% had declassified these documents, that doesn't put him outside the realm of legal jeopardy... 11:00.166 --> 11:01.666 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% Yamiche Alcindor: Yes. 11:01.666 --> 11:03.733 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% Nancy Cordes: ... because that still doesn't explain why he had 11:03.733 --> 11:07.366 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% these documents that were the property of the U.S. government that both DOJ 11:07.366 --> 11:11.133 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% and the National Archives had asked for, for nearly a year. 11:11.133 --> 11:16.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% It doesn't explain why they were sort of in boxes unsecured at Mar-a-Lago... 11:17.533 --> 11:19.066 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% Yamiche Alcindor: Yes. 11:19.066 --> 11:20.966 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% Nancy Cordes: ... a place that a lot of people had access to. 11:20.966 --> 11:23.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor: And, Peter, there's a lot of discretion, as Vivian put it, 11:23.033 --> 11:25.433 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% in terms of classification and what the president could do. 11:25.433 --> 11:27.466 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% But you have covered a number of administrations, 11:27.466 --> 11:31.433 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% so I just have to ask you, can presidents declassify documents by thinking about them? 11:31.433 --> 11:33.900 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% Peter Baker: Yes, that's the well-known mental 11:33.900 --> 11:36.633 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% telepathy exception to the classification rules. Yes. 11:38.533 --> 11:42.366 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% No, obviously not. A president obviously does have vast powers, as the chief executive, 11:44.333 --> 11:46.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% in terms of classification, no question. But I think that Nancy's point is exactly 11:46.400 --> 11:49.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% right. In some ways, this is a red herring. Obviously, it's important, 11:49.033 --> 11:53.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% the classification level of these documents. It's important the special master now is 11:53.000 --> 11:56.666 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% challenging President Trump to put up or shut up when he says he declassified it. 11:56.666 --> 11:59.066 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% But it does not get him off the hook. He does not own these documents, 11:59.066 --> 12:01.066 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% whether they're classified or not. He was not entitled 12:01.066 --> 12:03.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% to them. And he was not entitled to tell the government that he didn't have them... 12:03.933 --> 12:06.533 align:left position:20% line:89% size:70% Yamiche Alcindor: Yes. 12:06.533 --> 12:07.800 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% Peter Baker: ... which what he did, two lawyers who signed a statement to that -- to that effect. 12:07.800 --> 12:10.500 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% That brings the issue of obstruction to the core, 12:10.500 --> 12:13.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% which is not just about classification. And I think we ought to not forget that. 12:13.766 --> 12:16.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor: Well, Hugo, we also should not forget, to Peter's point, 12:16.900 --> 12:19.433 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% the fact that this is moving pretty quickly. 12:19.433 --> 12:22.500 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% There are so many people who were saying that Trump was trying to delay this process. And now 12:22.500 --> 12:27.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% there's a special master who is setting deadlines aggressively. What do you make of the timeline 12:27.100 --> 12:32.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% here and also the idea that Trump is being asked to provide real evidence to his claims? 12:34.133 --> 12:38.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Hugo Lowell: Look, I mean, Trump went and tried to get a special master because he 12:38.400 --> 12:40.833 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% thought, in part, it could kind of slow down this investigation. 12:40.833 --> 12:44.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% I mean, if you talk to people close to the former president, a lot of his advisers and 12:44.800 --> 12:49.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% aides were quite worried about perilously fast that criminal investigation seemed to 12:49.333 --> 12:53.900 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% be moving. I mean, certainly, the lawyers were taken by surprise when Mar-a-Lago got searched. 12:53.900 --> 12:57.566 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And in kind of the immediate aftermath, they were kind of searching around for -- if they 12:57.566 --> 13:00.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% could get any insight into what DOJ had and where they were going next. 13:00.766 --> 13:04.366 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% And that was kind of what birthed this whole special master request several weeks late. 13:06.433 --> 13:09.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And the fact of the matter is, he tried to delay it. But then this 11th Circuit 13:09.766 --> 13:14.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Court ruling has kind of upended all of that. He and his lawyers were hoping that, 13:16.700 --> 13:20.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% if the 100 classified documents remained in the play with the special master, then that 13:22.700 --> 13:24.933 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% could take weeks to resolve, right, because then the lawyers need potential security clearances 13:24.933 --> 13:28.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% There needs to be a way to kind of handle them that the special master can see them. 13:28.066 --> 13:30.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And the Trump lawyers have to be able to see them. And so they were hoping 13:30.766 --> 13:34.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% that could remain in play, and this could be stretched on for weeks, if not months. 13:34.000 --> 13:38.866 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And the fact that the 11th Circuit has now taken these out means the extent of the 13:38.866 --> 13:43.300 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% delay that Trump has been able to get has amounted to nothing more than 2.5 weeks, 13:43.300 --> 13:47.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% right? I mean, now the DOJ can resume that investigation. And that's really significant. 13:47.733 --> 13:51.766 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% I mean, two weeks is nothing. I mean, I spoke to a couple of former U.S. attorneys, 13:51.766 --> 13:55.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% and they say kind of the length of time it would take to screw up an investigation of 13:55.533 --> 13:59.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% this nature is probably several months. Two weeks just is not going to cut it. 13:59.233 --> 14:02.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% And the fact of the matter is, now he's going to have to, as you say, 14:02.700 --> 14:07.500 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% go before a -- before the court and say whether or not he actually declassified them, and if he 14:07.500 --> 14:11.433 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% can bring any evidence that the FBI planted those materials, as he's claiming in public. 14:11.433 --> 14:13.633 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% And my understanding is that he probably can't. 14:13.633 --> 14:16.533 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% Yamiche Alcindor: Well, it's a lot to watch. We're definitely 14:16.533 --> 14:19.000 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% going to be seeing what evidence, if any, they can bring forward. 14:20.566 --> 14:22.633 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% Thank you, Hugo, for sharing your reporting. And thanks for coming 14:22.633 --> 14:25.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% on for the first time. We're definitely going to have you back on WASHINGTON WEEK.