The central reason that Donald Trump was indicted for retaining documents marked as classified but President Biden was not is that Trump tried to retain the documents once the government sought their return. This is not a matter of opinion; it is, instead, the distinction drawn by special counsel Robert K. Hur when he declined to seek charges against Biden. Trump was known to have documents and tried to keep them. Hence the indictment.
Washington
Analysis | There’s new reason to think Trump still has classified documents
On Monday afternoon, CNN published an interview with a former Mar-a-Lago employee that bolsters one of the lingering possibilities surrounding Trump’s action: that he may still have documents at one of his other properties.
You will recall that the FBI’s 2022 search for documents was limited to Trump’s Palm Beach estate. The FBI gathered scores of documents from a storage room near the pool and from Trump’s personal office.
It was the third tranche of documents the government had recovered.
After grudgingly leaving the White House in January 2021, Trump moved to Mar-a-Lago, bringing with him a number of documents and mementos that he helped pack up. He also oversaw the return of a number of boxes of material to the National Archives, allegedly returning 15 of more than 70 boxes he’d brought to Mar-a-Lago.
The Archives found material marked as classified among the contents of the boxes and alerted the Justice Department. This led to the issuance of a federal subpoena for any material marked as classified. In early June 2022, attorneys working for Trump handed a Justice Department official a package that they represented was the entirety of the classified or marked-as-classified documents still in Trump’s possession.
That was not true. That August, the FBI searched Mar-a-Lago and found more than 100 more.
It has been understood for some time that the lawyers assembling the package of documents to be handed over in response to the subpoena were not given access to all of the boxes of material. Speaking to CNN, former Mar-a-Lago employee Brian Butler explained that, on the morning the Justice Department arrived to take possession of that package, he helped load boxes into Trump’s plane before the former president left for his home in Bedminster, N.J.
On June 2, the day before the Justice Department arrived, Mar-a-Lago employees including Trump’s valet Walt Nauta moved a number of boxes on the property, transporting more than two dozen to Trump’s residence before the attorneys began to search for responsive material.
Then, on June 3, Nauta reached out to Butler, who was in charge of vehicles at Mar-a-Lago.
“Walt had came up to me, and asked me if he could use one of our Escalades,” Butler told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins. “Since I ran the car service, I pretty much kept control over the vehicles. I had loaded a bunch of the family luggage into a minivan, and I was just going to drive it to the plane, load it up, and that’s it.”
Butler saw people he later recognized as Trump’s attorneys at Mar-a-Lago that day. The attorneys handed over the package of material and were allowed to look at the storage room where most of the material was stored. They signed a document attesting that no other material existed.
That same day, Butler headed to the airport to load the Trumps’ private plane for the flight to New Jersey. Nauta had already left, Butler told Collins, and had asked to be updated when Butler was on his way. He was waiting “at a nearby business,” Butler said.
“I texted him, hey, I’m on my way. He followed me. He pulled out and got behind me,” Butler told Collins. “We got to the airport. I ended up loading all the luggage I had. And he had a bunch of boxes.”
“You noticed that he had boxes?” Collins asked.
“Oh, yes, they were the boxes that were in the indictment,” Butler replied. “The white Bankers Boxes? That’s what I remember loading.”
Butler helped load those boxes, between 10 to 15 of them, onto the plane. He told Collins that he never saw them come back.
It is not necessarily the case that those boxes included classified material, certainly. But remember the context: This is the moment at which Trump’s attorneys were turning material over to the government that they’d plucked out of a subset of the boxes in Trump’s possession. Perhaps the movement on June 2 was simply about moving unrelated material to New Jersey when the Trumps left. Or perhaps material was transferred to Bedminster.
We know that there was probably at least one classified document at Bedminster after Trump left office: the one he had with him in 2021 when he was speaking to writers working on a book for his former chief of staff Mark Meadows. That document, mentioned by Trump in a recording that was later published by CNN, purportedly involved military plans. CBS News reported in June that the document was not among those mentioned in Trump’s later indictment. His lawyers indicated that they were unable to find any such document.
His lawyers had conducted a general search of Bedminster for any classified material in December 2022, without success. Perhaps this was because there were no classified documents on the property. Or, as was the case at Mar-a-Lago the prior June, they simply weren’t given the chance to look in the places where the documents were kept.
That’s the fundamental divide we’re asked to consider. Is it a coincidence that boxes were moved prior to the arrival of attorneys looking for classified material and that, the next day, boxes were flown to Bedminster? Or might Trump have lost that benefit of the doubt at some point over the past few years?
There’s one other element of the Butler interview worth mentioning. Some time later, he was speaking to a friend and colleague, Carlos De Oliveira. Last year, De Oliveira was added to the original indictment targeting Trump and Nauta. Butler said that he and De Oliveira were discussing the classified documents case when De Oliveira said, “You know, we’re all dirty, we all move boxes.”
Butler replied that the only time he’d moved boxes was to load them on the plane.
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This story contains descriptions of fatal violence against a transgender person.
The Seattle Police Department are searching for a suspect after a 19-year-old University of Washington student was stabbed to death in an off-campus student apartment complex on May 10.
Seattle Police Department Detective Eric Muñoz told NBC News that the victim is “believed to be a 19-year-old transgender female” who was enrolled at the university. The victim has not yet been publicly identified by name. She was found in the housing complex laundry room shortly after 10 p.m. on Sunday night.
The housing complex, Nordheim Court, is privately managed but affiliated with the university, located near an upscale shopping center in Seattle’s U-Village neighborhood. According to NBC News, residents received an official alert from UW to stay inside their homes and lock all windows and doors — an alert that was lifted around 1 a.m. with the acknowledgment that “a death investigation remains ongoing.”
According to SPD detective Eric Muñoz, police and the fire department attempted lifesaving measures but ultimately “pronounced the victim deceased at the scene.”
“Officers are actively searching for the suspect, believed to be a black male with a beard, 5’6-8” tall, wearing a vest with button up shirt, and blue jeans,” Muñoz wrote in a blotter report.
Muñoz noted that the victim would be identified by the medical examiner’s office in “the coming days.” The SPD did not immediately respond to Them’s request for comment.
This is the seventh known trans person to be violently killed in 2026. In mid-April, 39-year-old transmasculine farmer Luca RedBeard was fatally shot in rural New Mexico. Last week, police in Marion County, Florida opened a homicide investigation into the shooting death of a 29-year-old who went by multiple names and referred to “transitioning” on social media. In Kentucky, an investigation into the disappearance of 22-year-old trans college student Murry Foust remains ongoing.
Police are asking anyone with information about the University of Washington case to call the Violent Crimes Tip Line at 206-233-5000, emphasizing that anonymous tips are accepted.
This is a developing story.
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On a quiet stretch of Des Moines Memorial Drive in South Seattle, the Sea Mar Museum of Chicano/a/Latino/a Culture rises like a long‑overdue acknowledgment. Its brick exterior doesn’t shout; it invites. Inside, the rooms hum with the stories of families who crossed borders, harvested fields, organized classrooms, and built communities across Washington state—often without seeing their histories reflected anywhere on a museum wall.
For Rogelio Riojas, founder and CEO of Sea Mar Community Health Centers, the museum is a promise kept. “We wanted to make sure the contributions of Latinos in Washington state are recognized and preserved for future generations,” he told The Seattle Times when the museum opened in 2019. It was a simple statement, but one that captured decades of work—both visible and invisible—by the region’s Latino communities.
Walking through the galleries feels like stepping into a living archive. One of the most arresting sights is a pair of original farmworker cabins, transported from Eastern Washington. Their narrow wooden frames and sparse interiors speak volumes about the migrant families who once slept inside after long days in the fields. The cabins are not replicas or artistic interpretations; they are the real thing, weathered by sun, dust, and time. They anchor the museum’s narrative in the physical realities of labor that shaped the state’s agricultural economy.
Sea Mar describes the museum as “dedicated to sharing the history, struggles, and successes of the Latino community in Washington state,” a mission that plays out in photographs, letters, student newspapers, and oral histories contributed by community members themselves. These aren’t artifacts chosen from afar—they’re family treasures, personal archives, and memories entrusted to the museum so they can live beyond the kitchen tables and shoeboxes where they were once kept.
The story extends beyond the museum walls. Just steps away is the Sea Mar Community Center, a sweeping, light‑filled gathering space designed for celebrations, performances, workshops, and community events. With room for nearly 500 people, a full stage, a movie‑theater‑sized screen, and a catering kitchen, the center was built with one purpose: to give the community a place to see itself, gather, and grow. Sea Mar describes it as “a welcoming space for families, organizations, and community groups to gather, celebrate, and learn,” and on any given weekend, it lives up to that promise.
Together, the museum and community center form a cultural campus—part historical archive, part living room for the region’s Latino communities. Students come to learn about the Chicano activists who reshaped the University of Washington in the late 1960s. Families come to see their own histories reflected in the exhibits. Visitors come to understand a story that has long been present in Washington, even if it wasn’t always visible.
The Sea Mar Museum is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., offering free admission to anyone who walks through its doors. For many, it’s more than a museum—it’s a recognition, a gathering place, and a testament to the people who helped shape the Pacific Northwest.
Preserving Latino History and Community Life in Washington was first published on Washington Latino News (WALN) and republished with permission.
Celebrate Mothers Day with à la carte brunch at Lady Madison featuring seafood, entrées, desserts, and premium beverage options.
Celebrate Mothers Day in sophisticated style at Lady Madison, located inside Le Méridien Washington, DC, The Madison. Join us on Sunday, May 10, 2026, from 12:003:00 PM for an elevated à la carte brunch experience in downtown Washington, DC.
Enjoy a refined selection of chef-driven brunch classics, fresh seafood, seasonal salads, and elegant entrées. Highlights include a Build Your Own Omelette, Crab Benedict with lime hollandaise, Chilled Seafood Trio, and signature mains such as Roasted Rack of Lamb, Cedar Plank Sea Bass, and Marinated New York Strip Loin.
End on a sweet note with classic desserts including Crème Brûlée Cheesecake, Fruit Tart, Strawberry Shortcake, and Passion Fruit Cake.
Enhance your experience with beverage offerings, including bottomless Mimosas and Bloody Marys for $30 with house selections. Piper-Heidsieck Champagne is also available by the glass for $16 or by the bottle for $49.
Reserve on OpenTable:
https://www.opentable.com/booking/experiences-availability?rid=1426987&restref=1426987&experienceId=695240&utm_source=external&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=shared
À La Carte Menu
Les ufs & Brunch
Egg White Frittata $24
spinach, tomato, mushrooms, green onion
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit
Build Your Own Omelette $24
ham, smoked salmon, vegetables, cheeses (choose up to 3)
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit
Crab Benedict $24
lime hollandaise, salsa cruda
Served with pommes de terre rissolées or seasonal fruit
Brioche French Toast $17
berry compote, whipped butter, maple syrup
Les Froids & Salades
Chilled Seafood Trio $28
Jonah crab claws, shrimp, cocktail sauce
Spring Berry Salad $17
brie, berries, champagne vinaigrette
Golden & Crimson Beet Salad $18
red wine vinaigrette
Add protein: shrimp, salmon, skirt steak +18 | chicken +16
Les Plats Principaux
Roasted Rack of Lamb $42
mint sauce, huckleberry reduction, sweet potato purée, asparagus
Cedar Plank Sea Bass $49
saffron rice, spring vegetables
New York Strip Loin $42
mushroom sauce, truffle croquette potatoes, haricots verts
Les Desserts $14
Crème Brûlée Cheesecake
Fruit Tart
Strawberry Shortcake
Passion Fruit Cake
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