A three-judge federal appeals court ordered former Trump administration advisor Peter Navarro to turn over more than 200 emails he kept in a personal email account after he left the government, Politico reports.
Navarro admitted to using a Proton Mail account for official government business, something that reportedly was common with Trump administration officials. At least seven Trump White House officials used private, non-sanctioned communications tools like personal email accounts or messaging apps that would avoid official channels. Even though Donald Trump frequently called for Hillary Clinton to be jailed extrajudicially for using a private email account and server, Trump was silent when aides nightwalker Jared Kushner, daughter Ivanka Trump, shirt aficionado Steve Bannon, Hitler Youth alum Steven Miller and guy who doesn’t rate a sobriquet Reince Preibus all used private apps for messages. Trump never called for their arrest, nor did his administration investigate their use of personal accounts.
Navarro had claimed he could hold on to the government records which fall under the Presidential Records Act because he’s a Republican and the rules don’t apply to Republicans. No, that’s not true; the truth is even worse: Navarro claimed the government had no mechanism to enforce the law and said that turning over the documents would violate his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. The panel disagreed: “There is no public interest in Navarro’s retention of the records, and Congress has recognized that the public has an interest in the Nation’s possession and retention of Presidential records.”