airtime we have assembled a team of correspondents and experts to tell you what is known, but it could mean, and where it may lead. cnn s kaitlan collins starts us off. caitlin what are you learning about this fbi operation? john, it s a remarkable development with the former president himself confirming that the fbi has executed a search warrant on his home in palm beach, florida today. he said in a statement that his beautiful home, mar-a-lago in palm beach, which became s primary residence after he left the white house is, quote, currently under siege, rated and not occupied by a large number of fbi agents. he says after working in cooperating with the relevant government agencies, the sun announced raid on my home was not necessary or appropriate. he adds, quote, they even broke into my safe and he compared it to water gate or worse than water gain and maintains it s an effort to stop him from running for president in 2024. we should note we have now learned this search
that occurred at mar-a-lago between attorneys representing former president donald trump and agents there, looking to see if there was classified information being stored on the property. and it s this meeting that sort of precipitated the search that was executed at donald trump s residence in palm beach yesterday. we re told from sources who were present at the meeting that at the time that attorneys for donald trump shared documents, turned them over and showed them that there were in fact documents being held at mar-a-lago that had classified markings on them. the agents who were present then asked to see where these documents were being stored. they were taken to a basement room on the property, we re told. and just days after that meeting occurred, they were given they were sent a letter, asking them to create a more secure location for these documents to be held. at trump s property. and we re told that aides to the former president actually then put a padlock on the
an escalation of the investigations into donald trump and his inner circle that would require approval from the highest levels of the justice department. sources are saying that monday s search at trump s residence in palm beach is part of doj s probe into his handling of presidential records. some of the documents were classified. cnn has learned that agents left mar-a-lago with additional boxes of items, and sources also tell cnn investigators visited trump s home previously, then meets with his attorneys about the material taken from the white house. trump wasn t there at the time of yesterday s search, however, but he definitely has plenty to say about it. let s start with cnn s leyla santiago live in palm beach, florida. what more are you learning about the fbi search? reporter: kate, i can tell you that here at mar-a-lago it s been pretty quiet. we still see some law enforcement at some of the entrances for mar-a-lago, and then out where we are right now, the bridge b
search in a statement after the story first broke, writing, in part, after working and cooperating with the relevant government agencies, this unannounced raid on my home was not necessary or appropriate. they even broke into my safe. a top republicans are rushing to condemn the move, which was likely approved by the leaders of the justice department, including christopher wray, the fbi director who was appointed by former president trump. now, we ve got this story covered from florida and washington. cnn s gabby orr has more on what led to the warrant and we re going to begin, though, with cnn s leyla santiago near mar-a-lago. so, give us the details, first, of the search of trump s home. reporter: right, well, it s been more than 24 hours now, victor, since that execution of that search warrant by the fbi. right behind me, right at mar-a-lago. the primary residence of the former president, donald trump. so, here s what we know, and there s a lot we don t know, but let s
of politically motivated violence. and it all comes as president biden is set to give a prime time speech tonight, focusing on the soul of the nation. we ll have more on his message to a divided country just ahead. good morning. and welcome to way too early. on this thursday, the 1st of september. i m jonathan lemire. thanks for starting your day with us. breaking news overnight, former president donald trump s legal team has responded to the department of justice s latest filing on the classified documents seized during the fbi search of mar-a-lago. in their 18-page filing trump s lawyer suggested that by launching what they described as an unprecedented, unnecessary, and legally unsupported raid on mar-a-lago, the d.o.j. was quote criminalizing a former president s possession of personal and presidential records in a secure setting. trump s legal team also aggressively renewed its request for a special master, or a third party, to review the documents that the fbi agent