Trump reportedly packed White House boxes in secret, took 'top secret' documents to Mar-a-Lago

Top secret documents in Trump White House
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The National Archives found documents clearly marked as classified, including at the "top secret" level, among the 15 boxes of papers and mementos former President Donald Trump improperly took home from the White House, The Washington Post reports. Those documents are now being kept in secure storage by the Justice Department while officials determine the next step.

A "top secret" classification, according to the Archives, applies to documents in which unauthorized disclosure "could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the national security." Even if the Justice Department doesn't launch a criminal investigation into how such materials ended up at Trump's not-secure club, former federal prosecutor Brandon Van Grack tells the Post, "the FBI would want and need to review the information and conduct an investigation to determine what occurred and whether any sources and methods were compromised."

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.