Mick Mulvaney says the DOJ and FBI lost the benefit of the doubt with Republicans
Former Trump White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said Thursday that the FBI and the DOJ have lost the benefit of the doubt with Republicans.
Former Trump White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said Thursday on CNN that the FBI and the DOJ have "lost the benefit of the doubt" with Republicans in the U.S.
"There is a lack of trust on the right, right now, with the FBI. And I think the way they went about this, the fact that they went about this, and especially if the FBI did this only looking for documents, it is really going to create even deeper divisions in the country," Mulvaney said.
Mulvaney added that Republicans might have a problem with the FBI because they "misled the FISA court about the 2016 election in order to spy on Donald Trump’s campaign." He also said that they misled the public with regard to Hunter Biden's laptop. He said the raid either had to do with a legitimate investigation or, he continued, it was a "political hit job."
"My point is this, I think if you’re a conservative Republican who follows politics, the FBI and the DOJ especially have lost the benefit of the doubt. Because of the way they have behaved in the past, it's on — the burden is on them to actually show information as to why this is valid and why it is more than just about a confidential record search," he said.
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Mick Mulvaney joined CNN'S Brianna Keilar on Thursday to discuss the FBI raid at Mar-a-Lago. (Screenshot/CNN/NewDay)
Former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home was raided on Monday by FBI agents executing a search warrant related to documents the former president allegedly brought with him to his private estate after leaving the White House in 2021.
Mulvaney also said that if the raid was only about the documents, it was an overreach.
"If it's valid and it's real, and it's tied to some criminal activity related to Jan. 6, that’s fine. You folks know that I’ve been critical of the president’s conduct on Jan. 6. But if it is just about documents, that’s almost absurd. That’s the same thing that the FBI was investigating Hillary Clinton for and I don’t remember them invading her home. So if you are Republican, the reason you’re asking to act the way that you are, the last 48 hours, is that you really do feel like you’re not getting fair treatment from your own government and that’s a very dangerous place to be," he argued.
Former President Trump stressed the importance of restoring law and order in America in his first speech in Washington, D.C., since leaving office. (Getty Images)
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Trump released a statement on Monday about the raid, saying his home was "under siege" by a "large group" of FBI agents.
"Nothing like this has ever happened to a President of the United States before. After working and cooperating with the relevant Government agencies, this unannounced raid on my home was not necessary or appropriate," Trump said.
Former acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney speaks in the White House briefing room on Oct. 17, 2019. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
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"It is prosecutorial misconduct, the weaponization of the Justice System, and an attack by Radical Left Democrats who desperately don't want me to run for President in 2024, especially based on recent polls, and who will likewise do anything to stop Republicans and Conservatives in the upcoming Midterm Elections," Trump continued.
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