Stephanie Grisham, who served as Donald Trump’s White House press secretary and communications director, said she saw the former president showing documents to Mar-a-Lago guests.
During an interview with MSNBC on Saturday, Grisham said federal prosecutors’ allegations that Trump mishandled classified documents after leaving the White House are entirely plausible.
“I watched him show documents to the people of Mar-a-Lago on the dining room patio,” Grisham said. “So he has no respect for classified information, he never did.”
The former president was indicted by a federal grand jury in early June on charges related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents recovered from his Florida resort town of Mar-a-Lago.
Trump pleaded not guilty in federal court in Miami last month. He faces charges of willfully withholding national defense information under the Espionage Act, false statements and conspiracy to obstruct justice, in addition to other charges.
Trump claimed the charges against him were a hoax and politically motivated, and denied all allegations of wrongdoing. At times, he has also sought to use his legal troubles since leaving the White House to drum up support as he mounted a bid for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
While some Republican and independent voters have said Trump’s indictments make them less likely to back the former president in 2024, Trump currently remains the frontrunner in a broad Republican field.
Grisham also called Trump’s alleged mishandling of documents “offensive” to those who respect their high-level security clearances.
“I can’t stress enough that by being so loose with this stuff, he potentially puts people at risk,” she said. “It is vital to our country and our national security that only people with these clearances have access to any of these documents.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Stephanie Grisham says Trump showed documents to Mar-a-Lago guests