Thread by @ProfMJCleveland

THREAD: Trump's brief in opposition to the Motion for Stay helps frame what I see as THE key question. (Assuming there was no obstruction, which given DOJ's leaks I think is far assumption.) 1/

2/ This excerpt to me is KEY because it highlight two different kind of records: those falling under the Presidential Records Act and those falling under the Federal Records Act. Documents fit ONE or the other Category.

3/ Presidential Records are specifically defined as follows and excludes BOTH "personal records" AND "official records of an agency."

4/ Instead official records of an agency are covered by the Federal Records Act which defines records as:

5/ So, here's the interesting part from today's filing: Trump's team argues all of the records at issue are EITHER Presidential records or personal records. But why isn't it possible that instead they are "federal records?" Well, they can't be logically because they would be

6/ copies. They'd have to be copies since they weren't created by Trump--if they were, they'd be Presidential (or personal). And by definition, they aren't Presidential since they came from another agency (unless he wrote on them while president which is another issue).

7/ The question I've said was key from day one was were these "copies"--they must have been unless they were Presidential or personal records. So, while at first I thought "umm, no, they could be federal records," is wrong: The question is are they Presidential or personal.

8/ And the convenience copies for Trump are not Presidential, so they are "personal" whether marked classified or not. Is that nuts? Maybe, but that seems to be the law and since the law re classified documents does not apply to President, as Trump's lawyers pointed out,

9/9 there was no crime, so they had to create one. (And this discussion assumes some were still classified).