Merrick Garland’s Mar-a-Lago Warrant Gambit

Mr. Garland said he had asked the judge to release the warrant and property list presented by the FBI at Mar-a-Lago, which gives the appearance of transparency. The magistrate will no doubt consult Mr. Trump’s attorney, and if the former President declines his assent the warrant may stay sealed. That could make it look as if Mr. Trump is trying to hide something, though a warrant is nothing more than a license to search a premises. It is not an implication of guilt, though it can do reputational harm if it suggests the FBI is looking for evidence of wrongdoing.

The warrant may shed some light on the reasons for the search, but it will be only one side of the story. Mr. Garland was at pains Thursday to say his department is doing all this by the legal book, and that no one is playing politics. But the AG is clearly trying to deflect anger at Monday’s unprecedented search of a former President’s home without having to elaborate on the legal case he is pursuing.

It’s nice to hear Mr. Garland say he personally signed off on the search. But it’s a little much to hear him lecture the country that it’s beyond the pale to criticize the FBI. After the Russia collusion fraud, the Steele dossier con, the misleading FISA requests for the Carter Page warrants, and the

Robert Mueller

whitewash of all of that, there are plenty of reasons for Americans to take a don’t-trust-but-verify attitude to the bureau. This isn’t disdain for the rule of law. It’s well-earned skepticism.

By sanctioning the Mar-a-Lago search, Mr. Garland has broken a political norm that has stood for 232 years. He had better have enough evidence to justify it in the end, or he will have unleashed political forces and a legal precedent that Democrats as much as Donald Trump may come to regret.