Connect with us

Politics

JUST IN: Trump’s Co-Defendant Enters Plea In Documents Case

Published

1 year ago

on

An aide to former president Donald Trump, Waltine Nauta, and a co-defendant over Trump’s national security documents case has plead not guilty to multiple charges arrayed against him by Special Counsel Jack Smith according to Just the News. Mr. Nauta stands accused of conspiracy to obstruct justice, attempted document concealment, and making false statements. Mr. Nauta has,  in light of the charges, hired a new Florida-based lawyer to represent him. Nauta is a former Navy veteran and a former White House valet during the Trump administration.

Nauta’s Washington-based lawyer, Stanley Woodward, entered the not guilty plea on behalf his client. His boss, Donald Trump, had also plead not guilty to the charges marshaled against him. The false statement allegedly made by Nauta was in reference to his response over whether he knew about the moving of boxes containing documents and records. Some journalists have expressed skepticism over false statement and pointed out how the questions Nauta was asked were vague.

Michael Tracey, an independent journalist, expressed such disbelief when he wrote “So they charge the bodyman [Nauta] as well because he gives a mumbling answer to an FBI agent asking if he knows anything that would “make the intelligence community feel better.” That’s the evidence the bodyman engaged in a conspiracy with Trump. Un-freakin-believable.”

The segment of the indictment that Tracey posted showed that Nauta was asked whether he “had any information…that makes the intelligence community feel better about these things [the condition of the stored documents].” Nauta responded, “I wish I could tell you. I don’t know.”

Tracey also pointed out that this was “[a]nother classic “voluntary interview” with the FBI, the kind where they just casually swing by and ask for some help. Bodyman [Nauta] happy to oblige. Ends up charged with “conspiracy to obstruct justice” because he didn’t think to have a team of lawyers prepare his answers in advance.”

free hat

The segment of the indictment that Tracey referred to admitted that this was “a voluntary interview” with Nauta. A similar tactic was employed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation when they decided to confront Trump’s national security adviser Michael Flynn. Flynn participated in a voluntary interview that the bureau used to charge him with making a false statement to them. In the lead up to that interview, one bureau official discussed using the interview to get Flynn to lie.

The note by the official read “What’s our goal? Truth/Admission or to get him to lie, so we can prosecute him or get him fired?… If we get him to admit to breaking the Logan Act, give facts to DOJ & have them decide. Or, if he initially lies, then we present him [redacted] & he admits it, document for DOJ, & let them decide how to address it.”

Robert Barnes, a constitutional lawyer, summarized the faults with the Flynn case by writing “Flynn was lied into plea through coercive/extortionate threats against family, hiding evidence, doctored documents, government gaslighting & compromised/conflicted counsel…Flynn never admitted any criminal act as a “foreign agent” nor acted against America ever.”



Related Topics: