The FBI was authorized to use deadly force while searching President Biden’s Delaware home for a stash of classified documents in 2023 — just as they were with President Trump when the agency searched his Mar-a-Lago estate in 2022. 

Mr. Trump has been complaining that the permission for use of deadly force at his home is an example of a corrupt justice system and Mr. Biden’s involvement in the process. On Tuesday, he released a fundraising plea with the headline: “BIDEN’S DOJ WAS AUTHORIZED TO SHOOT ME.” 

The fundraising pitch claimed the agents came to his estate “locked and loaded” to “take me out.” Mr. Trump was not at the Florida estate when the search occurred.

Federal law enforcement has almost always been allowed to use deadly force when conducting searches, and the permission given to those officers who searched both the current and former president’s home is not a deviation from standard operating procedures, the FBI says. 

Agents “followed standard protocol in this search as we do for all search warrants, which includes a standard policy statement limiting the use of deadly force. No one ordered additional steps to be taken and there was no departure from the norm in this matter.” The FBI coordinated with the Secret Service in 2022 to make sure that the search went off with few hiccups. 

The permission for deadly force at Mr. Biden’s home last year was first reported by Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich. 

Conservatives have come to the former president’s defense since he first started making his claims of a weaponized justice system in this instance. The president of the Heritage Foundation, Kevin Roberts, said all Americans should be “outraged” that the FBI agents were following standard procedure. 

“For his entire term, President Biden’s weaponization of the federal government against not just his political opponent, but against parents, people of faith, and conservatives is unprecedented and a grave threat to our constitutional republic,” Mr. Roberts said in a statement Wednesday. “Our political leaders in Washington must step up to the plate to hold this administration accountable, and as I have said before, the FBI should be started over from scratch and rebuilt from the ground up. The very fabric of our nation depends upon it.”

Speaking on his podcast Wednesday, Senator Cruz said he was surprised that the FBI would maintain that standard deadly force procedure when searching a former president’s home when he is protected by another law enforcement agency. 

“So, they’re anticipating Secret Service may actively resist the FBI, and they’re prepared to engage,” Mr. Cruz said. “And they’re prepared to engage with an order that explicitly authorizes deadly force. Like, what in the hell?”