Ohio Republicans criticize Mar-a-Lago search, Democrats blast 'political pressure' on FBI

Ohio Republicans blasted the FBI search of former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home on Tuesday, suggesting it's a political ploy that warrants further investigation.

Federal agents searched Trump's Palm Beach property Monday in what appears to be part of a probe into whether he removed classified documents from the White House when he left office. The former president cast it as a "weaponization of the Justice System" aimed at preventing him from running for reelection in 2024.

Trump and his allies have faced scrutiny for a range of issues, including his business dealings and the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Ohio Republicans criticized the FBI and Department of Justice and demanded further details about what led federal officials to execute the search warrant. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Dayton, who sits on a House Intelligence Committee, asked FBI Director Christopher Way to provide the committee with information about the search.

Trump appointed Wray to the position of FBI director.

"What was on the warrant? What were you really doing? What were you looking for?" U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana, said in a Fox News interview. "Why not talk to President Trump and have him give the information you're after? This is unbelievable."

Democrats defended federal law enforcement officials and maintained that no one, including a former president, can circumvent the criminal justice system. Even Gov. Mike DeWine noted that the FBI doesn't "put out news releases" explaining who or what they're investigating.

"Our law enforcement agencies pursue their work without political pressure, and politicians' threats to interfere should alarm all of us," Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said. "Obtaining a search warrant from a judge requires law enforcement to present convincing evidence. For a warrant of this magnitude, that evidence would have to be strong."

Republican Sen. Rob Portman said he's monitoring the situation.

"I’m not going to jump to conclusions until we learn more, but we need to be sure our justice system is never politicized," Portman said. "The Justice Department should be transparent, including explaining on what basis they initiated this search."

Ohio Senate candidates react to Mar-a-Lago search

The Mar-a-Lago search also came up on the U.S. Senate campaign trail Tuesday.

At a Pickaway County farm, "Hillbilly Elegy" author J.D. Vance said "haggling over some documents" doesn't justify the search. He argued the issue transcends legal questions and said federal officials need to be transparent with the public before taking action that could make political waves.

"You're dealing with a very popular former president of the United States, so it's fundamentally a political question," Vance said. "There's also a proportionality question. It's not just, what do we have the right to do, but what is in the national interest to do, what inflames the political passions of the country, and what are the American people owed in light of the fact that there's a big controversy around this?"

Vance's opponent, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, struck a different tone.

"No person is above the rule of law," Ryan said. "It is my hope that this investigation delivers the accountability and justice we need to heal and move beyond this dark chapter in our country’s history."

USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau reporter Jessie Balmert contributed to this report.

Haley BeMiller is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Mar-a-Lago search: Ohio Republicans call FBI action political