Trump Asks Judge to Appoint Neutral Watchdog to Review Seized Documents

Former President Donald Trump wants a neutral "special master" to review the documents seized in the FBI's raid of Mar-a-Lago.

Trump's motion filed in Florida federal court Monday asks a judge to halt the Justice Department's review of the documents, to instead order the appointment of a special master to oversee the review, and to provide a more detailed inventory of what was seized. The 27-page filing calls the Justice Department's decision to search Mar-a-Lago a "shockingly aggressive" and "unprecedented" move. Trump reiterated those accusations in a Truth Social post Tuesday and again said that "ALL documents have been previously declassified."

Special masters are appointed to review criminal cases when there is concern that some seized material shouldn't be viewed by investigators due to attorney-client privilege or other factors. Special masters were appointed in the federal probes of former Trump attorneys Michael Cohen and Rudy Giuliani.

Reports from left-rated outlets often focused more on federal authorities' justification for moving ahead with the search and review of documents; NBC News highlighted how "the federal magistrate judge who signed off on the search reiterated earlier Monday that there was 'probable cause that evidence of multiple federal crimes would be found.'" Reports from right-rated outlets typically focused more on the details of Trump's filing; New York Post highlighted how the filing asked the government "to provide more detail about what was seized" and to "return any item not covered by the search warrant."