Last week, former President Donald Trump was indicted by the U.S. government for allegedly retaining, mishandling, and concealing classified documents after he left office. Charged with 37 criminal counts—including many that stem from the Espionage Act—Trump appeared in a Miami federal court on Tuesday and pled not guilty to the charges brought against him.
In this episode, legal experts Oona Hathaway of Yale Law School and Jamil Jaffer of the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University join to break down the legal and constitutional significance of the federal indictment. They also discuss potential outcomes of the prosecution, including effects on the upcoming 2024 presidential election; how these charges intersect with other charges being brought against President Trump in other courts including charges brought by the Manhattan district attorney in New York for allegedly falsifying business documents; how other countries around the world deal with heads of state who have been charged with breaking national and international laws; and how the decision to prosecute a president affects rule of law and the future of constitutional democracy.
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This episode was produced by Lana Ulrich, Bill Pollock, and Sam Desai. It was engineered by Greg Scheckler. Research was provided by Connor Rust, Tomas Vallejo, Sam Desai, and Lana Ulrich.
Participants
Jamil Jaffer is the Founder and Executive Director of the National Security Institute at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University where he also serves as an Assistant Professor of Law, Director of the National Security Law and Policy Program, and Director of the Cyber, Intelligence, and National Security LL.M. Program. Jamil has served in the legislative and executive branches, including as counsel to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the White House, and the Department of Justice.
Oona Hathaway is the Gerard C. and Bernice Latrobe Smith Professor of International Law at Yale Law School, Professor of International Law and Area Studies at the Yale University MacMillan Center, Professor of the Yale University Department of Political Science, and Director of the Yale Law School Center for Global Legal Challenges. She has been a member of the Advisory Committee on International Law for the Legal Adviser at the United States Department of State since 2005. She is also Executive Editor of and regular author at Just Security. Her most recent book is The Internationalists: How a Radical Plan to Outlaw War Remade the World.
Jeffrey Rosen is the president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization devoted to educating the public about the U.S. Constitution. Rosen is also a professor of law at The George Washington University Law School and a contributing editor of The Atlantic.
Additional Resources:
- United States v. Donald Trump and Waltine Nauta (indictment)
- Espionage Act: 18 U.S.C. § 793(e)
- The Presidential Records Act (PRA)
- Oona Hathaway, “What Donald Trump and Reality Winner Have in Common” NY Times, June 11, 2023
- Oona Hathaway on Classification of Government Documents, Washington Journal Interview, January 24, 2023
- Jamil Jaffer, on “The Lead with Jake Tapper”, June 12th, 2023, Complete Transcript
- Scott Bomboy, “The question of president immunity back in the spotlight” National Constitution Center, July 24, 2017
Transcript
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This transcript may not be in its final form, accuracy may vary, and it may be updated or revised in the future.
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