The most frightening fact of all about Donald Trump’s attempt to overthrow democracy, the Constitution, and the U.S. government as a whole is that it involved all three branches of government and a large number of agencies and officials to get as close as he did to succeeding. As it turns out, one of those agencies may include even the U.S. Secret Service.
NEW: National Archives instructs US Secret Service to investigate “unauthorized deletion” of Secret Service text messages from Jan 2021 pic.twitter.com/uLE95vEHip
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) July 19, 2022
The inspector general from the Department of Homeland Security reported that a tranche of text messages he requested from the Secret Service related to the Jan. 6 attacks were deleted after the request was made. Now, the chief records officer from the National Archives is demanding an investigation and detailed report within the next 30 days.
According to The Washington Post:
‘The National Archives on Tuesday sought more information on “the potential unauthorized deletion” of agency text messages. The U.S. government’s chief record-keeper asked the Secret Service to report back to the Archives within 30 days about the deletion of any records, including describing what was purged and the circumstances of how the documentation was lost.’
Breaking WaPo: The Secret Service has NO texts from Jan. 5 or 6, 2021 to hand over to the Jan. 6 Committee. The texts are gone.
Now, the National Archives is seeking more information on "the potential unauthorized deletion" of the messages. https://t.co/yBMc8ZAtH5
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) July 19, 2022
The agency claims that the messages were not intentionally deleted, but erased from phones and other devices as part of a pre-planned reset. The National Archives officials do not appear to accept this out of hand and want proof of how, when, and why the texts were deleted.
POLITICO reports that:
‘The Department of Homeland Security inspector general, who is charged with overseeing the Secret Service, has criticized the agency’s handling of the matter…The Homeland Security watchdog has also faulted the agency for having “significantly delayed” access to their records related to Jan. 6.’
NEW: The National Archives is reviewing the circumstances behind the deleted Secret Service texts from Jan.5-6, asking the agency to report within 30 days on any improprieties.
Confirming @CarolLeonnighttps://t.co/1eMY9rjtOC
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) July 19, 2022
The list of text messages and information requested by the National Archives is detailed. According to a letter obtained by the Washington Post, the agency in charge of preserving White House records had a long list of information to be reported.
The letter from the National Archives Chief Records Officer demanded that:
‘This report must include a complete description of the records affected, a statement of the exact circumstances surrounding the deletion of messages, a statement of the safeguards established to prevent further loss of documentations, and details of all agency actions taken to salvage, retrieve, or reconstruct the records.’
Reports that the Secret Service deleted text messages related to Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection have caught the attention of the chief records officer at the National Archives.https://t.co/PU8qHhTYzd
— NPR (@NPR) July 19, 2022
