Former President Donald Trump is defending keeping the folders used to store classified materials in a set of social media posts Tuesday.
Trump claimed many of the materials the Justice Department was claiming were documents were empty folders and said there was "nothing wrong" with him holding on to them.
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"Many of the so-called 'documents' that the 'Gestapo' took in the Raid of Mar-a-Lago, unlike the 'No Raids of Biden,' were merely inexpensive and very common folders with words such as 'Presidential Reading,' 'Confidential,' 'Classified,' or other words stamped on the front cover," Trump wrote. "There was nothing inside of the folders because, during meetings where information was passed out, say at the Oval Office, when finished the papers inside were taken back, but the empty folders were left behind."
"I would put them in a pile and keep them as momentous," Trump continued. "Nothing wrong with that, but sounds to me that the Injustice Department views these as DOCUMENTS — They are not!"
The claims from Trump that many of the alleged documents were empty folders come after it was reported that Trump's legal team had handed over additional material to the Justice Department in recent weeks. The additional piece of material is believed to be an empty folder that was marked as classified.
Trump used the reportedly empty folder as a shade to cover a blue light on a telephone that kept him up at night, one of his attorneys told CNN over the weekend.
The former president, President Joe Biden, and former Vice President Mike Pence have had classified documents discovered at their personal residences. The FBI searched Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in August 2022, while the Justice Department has searched properties belonging to Biden and Pence for more documents.
The Justice Department has appointed special counsels to investigate Biden's and Trump's alleged mishandling of classified materials. Jack Smith was appointed to investigate Trump, and Robert Hur was appointed to investigate Biden. Smith is also investigating other matters related to the former president, including his role in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021. The Justice Department has not publicly disclosed an investigation into Pence's handling of classified documents.
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Trump is one of two household Republicans who have declared runs for president in 2024. Former Trump administration veteran Nikki Haley, who was U.N. ambassador under Trump, announced her bid in a video earlier Tuesday. Other prominent Republicans, including Pence and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), are also expected to run for the high office.