>

They chose the best possible picture for this story 😂
Reverse National Treasure plot: they all have docs and have to team up to get them back to the Archives. >

I always thought it would be hilarious to put a bunch of former presidents in a anti-buddy-cop movie where they all hate each other but have to team up to save/do something and become best friends along the way. >

There is one! My Fellow Americans (1996). 
“Ex-presidents Kramer (Jack Lemmon) and Douglas (James Garner) have hated each other for years. But when the current administration of President Haney (Dan Aykroyd) -- Kramer's former vice president -- tries blaming a string of kickbacks from a defense contractor on the two former presidents, they band together. With Haney's goons trying to kill them, they set out across the country to try and clear their reputations. In the process, they see a side of America they never knew before.” >

I love this movie. It was one of those movies your family owns on vhs as a kid and you watched dozens of times. When you try to talk to other people about it they look at you like youre from mars. 
Anyways great film, 8 year old persianator loved it, and I still do. >

Well it's a good thing we aren't Gerald Ford or we'd be in a heap at the bottom of these stairs. >

I loved the bit where they shared their own personal lyrics for "Hail to the Chief". >

I love that part, I think of it whenever I hear that song >

The Carter comments are funny, since he predates the presidential records act, and it's likely that any documents he might have would be automatically declassified by this point anyway.
I feel like they included him just to be nice. >

Carter was smart and hide his documents in walls as insulation in homes he built with Habitat for Humanity
Edit: I’m glad so many watch late night television and you feel the need to let me know that you do so. However, I do not. If it bothers you to see similar jokes being made about the same current events, feel free to give him credit. I don’t need you too tell me you watch Colbert. >

This actually made me laugh. I know his presidency is often looked at negatively general public. But man he really was the kind of person that you wanted to have as your president. His integrity, character and good-nature was what you loved about the typical IDEA of an effective, capable leader. Ironically, was probably his kindness genuine care about his country and citizens that resulted in decisions made  judged pretty harshly by people today. >

I totally agree. He was also the only president who was genuinely horrified by some of the unscrupulous things the CIA did and worked to curtail it. They hated him for it. >


I totally agree. He was also the only president who was genuinely horrified by some of the unscrupulous things the CIA did and worked to curtail it. They hated him for it.

Might explain why the hostages in Iran were never freed during his term. Also, fuck Regan >

This is the real reason. Republicans cut a deal with our enemy who was holding our citizens hostage in order to win an election. They haven't given a shit about America since Nixon; each of their Presidential nominees worse and more incompetent than the last. >

Didn’t the hostages get released during regan’s inauguration? >


One of the leading national issues during 1980 was the release of 66 Americans being held hostage in Iran since November 4, 1979.[1] Reagan won the election. On the day of his inauguration—in fact, minutes after he concluded his 20-minute inaugural address—the Islamic Republic of Iran announced the release of the hostages.[2]
The timing gave rise to an allegation that representatives of Reagan's presidential campaign had conspired with Iran to delay the release until after the election to thwart President Jimmy Carter from pulling off an "October surprise".[3][4]

Wikipedia - October Surprise conspiracy theory >

Then there was the whole Iran-Contra thing >

What about Cheney? >

there can't be anything left at his place anymore. I'm sure any documents in his possession have long since been turned over to the good people at Halliburton. >

Some retired officials still get read into top secret briefings.  I think it's a courtesy for ex Presidents, but considering Chaney was running the show and Bush Jr was a figurehead, I won't be surprised is some right leaning DoD generals keep him looped in with official sign off. >


Some retired officials still get read into top secret briefings. 

This is a necessary thing, tbh, because if someone has experience with, say, the political intrigue in Islamabad or knowledge of how another government operates, that's not always something passed on in paperwork. Sometimes it's just better ringing up the old guard to get their take on things.
IIRC, Kennedy phoned Eisenhower to consult him on how to handle the Cuban Missile Crisis. >

Sometimes certain former Presidents will have better personal relations with other world leaders (especially the life-long ones) as well.
Make for good back channels. >

It's better than just being given a letter, and a pistol by your predecessor. >

Anybody ask Dick Cheney? >

Back in 2007:
Vice President Cheney's office has refused to comply with an executive order governing the handling of classified information for the past four years and recently tried to abolish the office that sought to enforce those rules, according to documents released by a congressional committee yesterday. >

Wow! How'd I miss that story? >

Lost in the shuffle with Cheney's man-sized safe and his own personal "treat as classified" stamp. >

Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and 330 million other Americans were marked safe from possession of classified documents. >

Idk man, when was your last audit? >

Shit, I just reached for my favorite waifu manga and ... it was classified dox. 😫 >

Don't you hate it when that happens!? >

You know what’s more annoying? When you run out of toilet paper, have to quickly grab some from under the sink, and instead grab a roll of classified documents. >

The old shit ticket swapped with Classified documents joke… In the military we call this “freaky Fridays”….everyone has to stay late to find the rest of the classified documents. good time good times. >

I sure wish they would've covered that in the annual trainings. >

I feel like they're asking to get searched. >

They're confident that establishing their presidential libraries had already inventoried their stored records as thoroughly as can reasonably be expected. >

They probably returned all classified documents in that search when discovery and return of such documents was not newsworthy. >

The reason it's become an issue now is because, customarily, National Archives only needs to inform the party that they possessed classified documents. And they would be promptly returned. As was the case with these three presidents. 
The NA followed that procedure with Donald Trump. The problem is that he hid some documents, refused to return the ones identified, improperly held them... And it's currently being investigated whether he released them to potentially adversarial parties. 
There's a separate conversation about whether we "over-classify" documents. A lot of Biden's classified documents were just old Day Planner calendars. Technically classified, but I wonder how much national security is jeopardized if they are declassified.  Same with the stuff Pence had apparently. From what I've seen of the Donald Trump collection, there are some very sensitive nuclear secrets, the names and locations of various intelligence agents, dirt on foreign leaders.... Some stuff that really makes you wonder why he wanted to keep it. He's literally going to court to try to withhold returning it. 
These are not all the same scandal. >

This is what people can't seem to understand, especially now that they get to "both sides" it.  If Trump had returned all documents when asked, it would have been a nothingburger.  Having the documents wasn't the big deal (Let's just not think about what he was doing with them right now).  It's that he tried to keep them and also lied about having returned them. >


Having the documents wasn't the big deal

Ehhh. He had some pretty high level shit, no? Pence and Biden most likely had some stuff lying around that wasn't national security level bad to have. And neither of them seem to have intentionally had it shipped to their homes.
Yes, the way Trump went about it all is the issue. But even the severity of it, in and of itself, was worse. And I am giving Pence the benefit of the doubt, but given that he seems to be cooperating leads me to believe it wasn't malicious. >

Well, yes, that's why I said let's just ignore that for this point.  But what he had definitely needs more investigation, especially given other considerations. >

Fair. I thought you were just skipping intent. Which should be a large piece, but apples to apples on the act itself, one of the three is still a bit more egregious. >

The problem with Trump is that there's never a clear answer on the question of "malice or incompetence?" I can absolutely see him keeping intelligence because he thinks it's valuable and could be sold to someone else. I can also completely see him holding onto to his intelligence briefings just because they're "his", and he wants to show off how important he is.
It's very difficult to prove intent. If you can prove that criminal actions took place that don't require specific intent (such as refusing to give back the documents and lying about them), that's much easier. >

I mean, either intent to sell or intent to hoard is still willfully taking them. Which is different than, "oh shit. I did forget to return these. Better let officials know." Which seems to have been the approach Biden and Pence took. Albeit way late, and after they bagged on someone else.
But legally, yes. It's much easier to go after the more blatant cover-up and obstruction. And as much as I want to see Trump face consequences, I'm still hoping he didn't actually sell top secret info to another country. >

Tbh, people who have been elected to positions with top security clearance possessing top secret documents/data is not as disturbing to me as just how lax the White House/federal government is with our top secret documents/data. How many top secret documents/data are in the possession of unfriendly hands? >

Let's not forget that China hacked the Office of Personnel Management and acquired files of everyone who has gotten a security clearance which covers millions of people and their backgrounds and close relations, financial situation, history of where they lived, close friends, etc. 
Security is an illusion especially in our government.
Note: Previously said they hacked the NSA, but it was just a hack that had highly sensitive NSA personnel data >

OPM not the NSA. OPM is who handles clearance investigations and such. >

So they only got access to everyone with a background checks full personal file no biggie 😂 >

I’m not saying it’s not a big deal, just clarifying who was hacked. >

Now ask Cheney!! >

Cheney deleted 2 million email messages.  I suspect he has docs. >

Oh fuck yeah! And they're in boxes next to his collection of hunting rifles. He's daring someone to come get them! >

“Mr. Cheney we are coming by to see if you happen to be in possession of any classi-“
A day or two later you wake up in the hospital with Dick Cheney with some flowers in your room.
“Sorry about that, I thought I saw a quail on your face. Now what is it you wanted to ask me?” >

Cheney wouldn't apologize. He'd make the victim apologize. I mean, that's what he did. >

Hilarious photo right under the headline >

I know, that picture is absolutely perfect. >

Scrolled too far to find this comment. Those smiles all become giant shit-eating grins in context, Obama is even waving goodbye to the bullshit with his cool guy shades on. Priceless >

Can we do Mitch next? >

I used to have classified documents. I still do, but I used to, too. >

The best Mitch >

Is that your final answer? >

Doesn't really matter. If they are discovered to have them, they'll alert the right people and turn them over immediately. >

I bet they do say that.  So did Pence. >

Check Jarod Kushner's house. He got $2 billion. >

The real question is how many do the Saudis have >

MBS already said he got copies of the Presidential Daily Briefs from Kushner, so yeah.... >

I guess their toilets don't clog. >

Sometimes you gotta flush a toilet 10 times, 11 times. Sad. >

At this point I might need to check my own house. >

Me too, but, to be on the safe side, I'm just going to send all my documents to the National Archives and let them figure it out.  
Apparently, NA employees are experts at filing documents, and I hate filing.  If they can handle this for me, I'm all for it. >

Yeap and still the false equivalence being made. The difference is Trump denied having them, when he did. He moved them a couple of times. It’s known that foreign entities may have had access to these documents, and some disappeared. Then the raid happened, Trump claims it’s planted. Then ask for them back. Also obstruction at every step. Also these docs that Trump had contained some of the highest intelligence levels of information, not someone’s daily schedule that got marked confidential. >

Still surprised, that Trump took work home. >

next week's article:

Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama ~~say they~~ have ~~no~~ classified documents >

Frankly I could barely care less if they have a few accidentally still on file or something.  The delineation point started out as, and still is, who knowingly packed up crates full while still in power, absconded with them to their private insecure residence, denied/lied/gaslight/fought for months to not return anything / not get searched, until they had no choice (and even then still denied/gaslit like crazy).
So far, the above describes one and only person that I know of.  And if it ends up describing anyone else in addition, then let them be investigated as well. >

yeah, ultimately, intent is 3/4 of the law. its funny how they are trying to spin the other cases as similar to the big one >

Meanwhile Carter is sitting on those Area 51 docs. >

My take with Obama is he has none at all.  He has been subject to scrutiny since before he was even elected.  He knows that one slip up and the right wing would go after him.  I suspect he made sure everything was clean for himself before he left office. >

He also tended to use a lot less physical copies of documents than anyone else did, if I recall correctly. >

Mostly the secure IPADs. >

This is how it should be done. Tightly controlled tablets that can only connect to the WH network, that set off alarms if they leave the WH grounds, and with access to documents that can be controlled remotely and with automatic expiration (and with logs of every single time a document is accessed). 
This should have been the norm for at least a decade by now. >

Why are yall saying iPad with all capitals? >

No idea...  Just typing... >

Yeah no sweat, I just found it funny because it makes them sound like a military-grade weapon. Got some IPAD-22 let’s send some IPADs to Ukraine… >

Check them anyway.  Just by seeing that Trump, Pence, and Biden all had classified documents in their homes and offices outside of SCIF's, means that every cabinet member of every former president needs to have their homes, offices, etc all searched for classified documents.  Carter too! >

Indeed. This is ridiculous.
This is an institutional problem. 
Some of the classified materials systems have failed that most basic of library science. Checking materials back in,  from principals.
I'm astonished by the laxity of security. No doubt adversarial intelligence agencies are taking note >

What does Carter say??? >

He was President before the law governing classified documents was passed. >

He was the President that signed the law governing classified documents. >

Right, but it didn’t take effect until he’d left office. >

That is correct. He was not bound by the law he signed. 
Like Biden and Pence, and unlike Trump, he turned them over to the archives as soon as they were found. >

Lol they probably did at some point recently but not no more 😂
This whole issue is just funny. This really says less about corruption (not saying that’s not what is at play) but more about how little oversight we really have for our highest executives in office. 
What needs to happen is better oversight of how classified documents are accessed so we can keep better track of who saw them. At this point I can’t imagine it’s even necessary to print something unless it’s so classified it needs to be typed on a typewriter or handwritten and in that case I can’t see how that document wasn’t destroyed after reading. Our government is so ridiculously dumb and it’s depressing. >

what of Cheney? I mean, he was more a president than Bush? >

Dick Cheney when asked cocked his shotgun >

Why would W steal something he could just get at his dad’s house? >

That's what they all say! >

Donald Trump also says he has no classified documents because he declassified them through the act of imagining they were declassified, and also they’re his so give them back. >

Oh the good ol’ days >

If this is true, it’s only because they’ve spent over a decade making sure they don’t have them. >

I wonder how many of them found documents over the years and sent them back to the archive with no media coverage. They might be right in not having anything because no one was paying attention when they sent stuff back >

If Trump had sent his back when asked there wouldn't have been any media coverage of that either. >

Dan Quayle though is sweating! >

Dan is still trying to spell potato. He doesn’t have time to look for classified documents >

Hey don’t dis Dan, he saved our democracy recently by telling Pence he had to count the votes. >

They do. >

It wouldn't surprise me if Cheney took some stuff behind Bush's back. >

It's how Bush can get away with saying he doesn't have any docs. Cheney took them - and he's ready for whoever comes for them! >

I’m not a fan of W, but I really think he’s too dumb to know if he had anything. Cheney is evil and smart. HE knows. >

Jimmy Carter is taking his classified documents to the grave. >

I bet pretty much all presidents have shit in their houses. >

Not if their toilets are in working order. >

Has anyone checked if former president George Santos has any leftover classified docs from his administration? >

Barack is definitely the type to know the exact contents of his briefcase at all times and always put classified materials EXACTLY where they’re supposed to go before he leaves work every day. 
Anything important that Bill took home, on accident on purpose, definitely has been shredded by now.
But George’s wife probably still finds crumpled up top secret documents in his suit pockets occasionally that he never even knew he had in the first place. >

They all say no until they find them in a garage. >

Next week:

Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama found to have classified documents in homes after FBI search. >

That f---ing picture of the three amigos. Classic! >

Looking at you Jimmy Carter >

What about dick cheney though?
He was, in effect, President. >

And Carter remains silent? He must be the mastermind behind all of this!
/s because sarcasm doesn’t translate well these days >

Yeah? What about Abraham Lincoln? That bastard thinks lying low will make us overlook the role he played in pizzagate, that he travelled with Epstein and that he privately wore a tan suit once, the cardinal sin of them all