U.S. appeals court will allow Justice Department to resume use of documents seized at Mar-a-Lago

Washington, September 23 (RHC)-- A federal appeals court has ruled the Justice Department can resume its use of records marked as “classified” in its investigation of former President Trump’s mishandling of government documents. 

The ruling is a major setback for Trump in his efforts to derail a federal criminal probe into whether he violated the Espionage Act and presidential records laws — and whether he obstructed justice to cover up those crimes. 

On Wednesday, a three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected key parts of an order by Federal District Judge Aileen Cannon that put the DOJ’s investigation on hold while a special master reviews the documents. Judge Cannon was nominated to the federal bench by Trump.

On Wednesday, Donald Trump gave his first TV interview since the FBI executed a search warrant at his Mar-a-Lago resort in August.  Trump told Fox News there doesn’t have to be a process by which presidents declassify secret materials.  Donald Trump: “If you’re the president of the United States, you could declassify just by saying it’s declassified, even by thinking about it.”