Alyssa Farah Griffin says she hopes the DOJ is 'buttoned up' on Mar-a-Lago raid
Alyssa Farah Griffin said Tuesday that the DOJ might have handed Donald Trump the Republican nomination and potentially the presidency if they don't come up with something "serious" from the Mar-a-Lago raid.
Media commentators ranging from Donald Trump's strongest foes to most fervent allies appeared in agreement on one thing Monday: the FBI raid of his Mar-a-Lago home may have handed him the 2024 Republican nomination.
The FBI executed a search warrant of the former president's Florida residence on Monday, stunning the news industry and incensing Trump and his supporters. Sources told Fox News Digital the search was in connection with materials that Trump took with him from his time as president. Sources also said National Archives and Records Administration referred the case to the Justice Department, which recovered 15 boxes of classified materials from the home.
CNN commentator Alyssa Farah Griffin, who served as Trump's White House communications director but is now one of his fiercest critics, fretted on "New Day" that an empty-handed raid could send Trump to the White House.
"This, I'm hoping, goes beyond simply not complying with some archiving laws, or [the Department of Justice] just handed Donald Trump the Republican [nomination] and potentially the presidency," she said. "If it's seen as some sort of massive overreach and not something incredibly serious, this is a very good day for Donald Trump."
NANCY PELOSI REACTS TO FBI RAID ON TRUMP'S MAR-A-LAGO RESORT, SAYS AUTHORITIES HAD 'JUSTIFICATION'
Supporters of former U.S. President Donald Trump wave flags as they gather outside his Mar-a-Lago home after Trump said that FBI agents raided it, in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., August 8, 2022. (REUTERS/Marco Bello)
Joe Walsh, the ex-GOP congressman who like Farah Griffin evolved from a passionate Trump fan to one of his sharpest media foes, also expressed concern the search of the former president's home may rally his supporters behind the flag.
"Both things are true: 1. The Justice Department’s job is to pursue justice & uphold the rule of law. And they should NEVER let politics get in the way of that. Yesterday, they did their job. 2. What happened yesterday handed the 2024 GOP nomination to Donald Trump," he tweeted.
Trump has essentially frozen the 2024 GOP field as he gives hints that he will make a third run for the White House without formally announcing yet. His dramatic statement about the raid said his home had been "occupied," "raided," and was "under siege" by the FBI, and it received a strong reaction from his backers.
CNN's Dana Bash said Trump had greatly advanced his short-term political goal of capturing the nomination, saying his language in the statement about the raid was "kind of genius."
"It totally triggers and animates the people not only who like him, but there was concern, according to people around Trump, that he had, that he was losing some mojo. He was having some trouble raising money. And this, he believes, would turn it around," she said.
A police officer speaks with a woman outside former U.S. President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home after Trump said that FBI agents raided it, in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., August 8, 2022. (REUTERS/Marco Bello)
2020 Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang, who has since formed the new Forward Party, worried that the raid would contribute to the depiction of Trump "against a corrupt government establishment. The raid strengthens that case for millions of Americans who will see this as unjust persecution."
"Trump is winning the FBI-raid caucus going away—we’ll learn more, but this is his best day in pursuit of the 2024 nomination in a long time," National Review's Rich Lowry tweeted.
"Was the FBI's Raid on Mar-a-Lago the Biggest In-Kind Contribution to Trump's 2024 Bid?" a Townhall column by Matt Vespa asked, while HotAir's Ed Morrissey asked, "Are they trying to hand Donald Trump the nomination in 2024?"
FBI RAID ON TRUMP'S MAR-A-LAGO CELEBRATED BY LEFTISTS ON TWITTER: ‘A BEAUTIFUL RAID’
Others suggested the raid had only clinched his desire to seek the White House again.
Even straight news outlets framed the story as a potential boon to Trump's White House run, which he's hinted at for months.
Former President Donald Trump (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky) (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
"Donald Trump has given every signal that he’s running for president in 2024. The FBI search of his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida on Monday may only harden his resolve to jump in the race — and possibly speed up the timetable," NBC News reported.
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, R., was among the potential 2024 candidates who expressed support for Trump after news of the raid broke.
"The raid of MAL is another escalation in the weaponization of federal agencies against the Regime’s political opponents, while people like Hunter Biden get treated with kid gloves. Now the Regime is getting another 87k IRS agents to wield against its adversaries? Banana Republic," he tweeted.
Fox News' Stephanie Pagones, David Spunt and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.