Carlos De Oliveira, the property manager at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, made his first court appearance Monday for his part in the federal case against Trump for alleged hoarding of classified and sensitive government documents. De Oliveira was named in new indictments last week, which were piled on top of the existing indictments, bringing the total charges against Trump to 40.
De Oliveira didn’t make a formal plea in this first trip to a federal court in Florida, following the example of Trump’s other codefendant, Waltine “Walt” Nauta, because he doesn’t yet have an attorney licensed to practice there. He will be formally arraigned on Aug. 10 in Fort Pierce, Florida. He was charged and released on a $100,000 bond. Chief Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres instructed De Oliveira to not discuss his case with his co-defendants, Trump and Nauta.
That’s yet another delay in the case, undoubtedly by design. That’s a tactic special counsel Jack Smith has already had to fight, as Trump’s valet and Diet Coke provider Nauta dragged out the process of hiring a Florida attorney. He was indicted with Trump on June 8 and finally formally pleaded not guilty in his July 6 arraignment after two previously scheduled court dates were delayed by his lack of counsel. Trump’s strategy here is pretty obvious: Keep delaying the hearing until he’s officially the Republican nominee for 2024.
In the meantime, Trump can keep fundraising off of his legal troubles and his loyal rubes will keep on picking up the tab, paying for his, Nauta’s, and De Oliveira’s lawyers. Trump’s PAC, Saving America, is expected to report in filings due Monday that it has spent $40.2 million in legal costs so far this year. That’s by far the largest expense the PAC has incurred in Trump’s never-ending campaign, money coming largely from Trump’s small-dollar loyalists who just can’t give up the dream.
It is a really handy money-raising scheme, one that his advisers promised they’ll keep up, the Washington Post reports, saying “the costs of providing lawyers for dozens of people are necessary and will continue mushrooming as investigations continue, trials are scheduled and the possibility of more charges looms.” More charges? Yes, please!
Those “dozens of people” the PAC is paying the legal tabs for are another possible area of scrutiny for federal prosecutors. Some of these dozens could also be known as “witnesses,” and their being reliant on Trump money could be a conflict of interest. Think about Casey Hutchinson, the former White House aide. She testified to the Jan. 6 committee about her Trump-allied lawyer, who coached her on her depositions.
“We just want to focus on protecting the president. We all know you’re loyal,” Hutchinson said the lawyer, Stefan Passantino, told her. “We’re gonna get you a really good job in Trumpworld. You don’t need to apply other places. We’re gonna get you taken care of. We want to keep you in the family,” she testified. That’s likely the message dozens of Trump witnesses have heard or will hear from lawyers being paid by Trump’s PAC. So, yes, that could pose yet another avenue for investigation by prosecutors.
The superseding indictment that charges De Oliveira includes evidence of his conspiring with Nauta and Trump to get rid of security camera footage of the area where classified documents had been stored, and where Nauta was moving boxes around. De Oliveira is charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice; altering, mutilating, destroying, or concealing an object; altering, mutilating, destroying, or concealing a document, record, or other object; and false statements or representations.
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