NYP: FBI tracked Melania and Barron Trump travel before Mar-a-Lago search
In short
The New York Post reported that the FBI tracked the movements of Melania and Barron Trump as part of the investigation into national security documents kept at Mar-a-Lago, with the probe carried out under the codename Plasmic Echo during Joe Biden's presidency, Kommersant reported. RIA Novosti and TASS said the FBI under Biden could have monitored the movements of Trump and his family. The White House called the actions “a shameful abuse of state power” and “spying on political opponents”, according to Kommersant.
Why it matters
Russian state outlets gave prominent play to a US press report alleging that federal investigators monitored the family of a political opponent, a framing that echoes the abuse-of-power argument in the report itself. The documents also tie the surveillance claim to a criminal case that has already been closed, so the coverage revives a dispute that US courts resolved in 2024. The documents do not indicate any official investigation into the surveillance claims.
Key facts
- The New York Post reported that the FBI tracked the movements of Melania Trump and Barron Trump as part of the investigation into national security documents at Mar-a-Lago, according to Kommersant. [ 3 ]
- The investigation was carried out under the secret codename Plasmic Echo during Joe Biden's presidential term, NYP reported. [ 3 ]
- The FBI wiretapped calls from the phone of Susie Wiles, then head of the US president's political activity and now White House chief of staff, for several months, according to the report. [ 3 ]
- The surveillance and wiretapping were authorised by former attorney general Merrick Garland on the recommendation of FBI director Christopher Wray, Kommersant reported. [ 3 ]
- The White House described the actions as “a shameful abuse of state power” and “spying on political opponents”. [ 3 ]
- The criminal case over secret documents against Donald Trump was closed by a court in July 2024 because of the unlawful appointment of special counsel Jack Smith. [ 3 ]
- Before the August 2022 search, the National Archives and Records Administration had already removed at least 15 boxes of official documents from Mar-a-Lago, and the FBI later seized more than 300 documents of various classification levels. [ 3 ]
Confirmed by several sources
Still unclear
- Whether the surveillance described by The New York Post actually took place and on what scale The claim rests on a single outlet, The New York Post, as relayed by Kommersant; RIA Novosti and TASS carry only short headline reports and no independent confirmation is given.
- What exactly the documents released by the White House Task Force on Government Transparency contain Kommersant refers to the documents as evidence but does not quote them or their contents.
- The full scope of the monitoring of Susie Wiles' contacts and of the family's travel schedules The documents give a general description only, without dates, numbers or lists.
- What RIA Novosti and TASS reported beyond their headlines Only the headline summaries for documents 1 and 2 were available; no article text was accessible.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- RIA Novosti reports that the FBI followed Trump's family during Biden's presidency, citing The New York Post. [ 1 ]
- TASS reports that the FBI under Biden could have tracked the movements of Trump and his family. [ 2 ]
- Kommersant publishes a detailed account of the reported surveillance, the White House response and the background of the Mar-a-Lago documents case. [ 3 ]