Top Democrat Jerry Nadler demands documents for investigation into Trump
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler has delivered a slew of document requests as a first step in his investigation into President Trump and his associates, as the White House adjusts to the realities of a Democratic-controlled House of Representatives.
On Monday, Nadler revealed his committee has requested documents from 81 entities and individuals, from the White House to Donald Trump Jr. and Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg. Nadler is probing allegations of obstruction of justice and public corruption. The document request is the largest issued since Democrats took control of the lower chamber in January, and all the subpoena powers that come with it.
"Over the last several years, President Trump has evaded accountability for his near-daily attacks on our basic legal, ethical, and constitutional rules and norms," Nadler said in a statement. "Investigating these threats to the rule of law is an obligation of Congress and a core function of the House Judiciary Committee. We have seen the damage done to our democratic institutions in the two years that the Congress refused to conduct responsible oversight. Congress must provide a check on abuses of power."
Asked if he would cooperate with the document requests, Mr. Trump told reporters Monday, "I cooperate all the time with everybody," but also called the investigation a "total hoax."
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders acknowledged the receipt of the document request, saying in a statement, "The House Judiciary Committee's letter has been received by the White House. The Counsel's Office and relevant White House officials will review it and respond at the appropriate time."
Nadler is also demanding records from include Trump reelection campaign manager Brad Parscale, former Trump aide Carter Page, senior White House adviser Jared Kushner, former White House communications director Hope Hicks, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon and former chief of staff Reince Priebus. He also wants documents from American Media Inc., which publishes the National Enquirer, and Cambridge Analytica, a controversial data firm that worked with Mr. Trump's 2016 campaign.
Counsel to the committee said they conveyed the basic contours of the project to the Southern District of New York and special counsel Robert Mueller last week.
Rep. Doug Collins, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, said Democrats were "hedging their bets" even though the investigation by Mueller has not yet been released.
"After recklessly prejudging the president for obstruction, Chairman Nadler is pursuing evidence to back up his conclusion because, as he admits, 'we don't have the facts yet,'" Collins claimed.
The Democrats on the committee, however, view their investigation as much broader than the Mueller inquiry, which is limited to Russian interference ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
Nadler's requests come as the White House has so far been unresponsive to requests from the House Committee on Oversight and Reform on issues pertaining to Kushner's security clearance, and as the House Ways and Means Committee prepares to demand the president's tax returns.
Last week, former Trump attorney Michael Cohen took the spotlight as Mr. Trump was in Vietnam for his summit with Kim Jong Un, with Cohen calling the president a "racist" and a "conman," and alleging he violated the law while in office.
Here are the entities Nadler and other Democrats on the committee are demanding documents from this week, as released by the Judiciary Committee:
1. Alan Garten (letter, document requests)
2. Alexander Nix (letter, document requests)
3. Allen Weisselberg (letter, document requests)
4. American Media Inc (letter, document requests)
5. Anatoli Samochornov (letter, document requests)
6. Andrew Intrater (letter, document requests)
7. Annie Donaldson (letter, document requests)
8. Brad Parscale (letter, document requests)
9. Brittany Kaiser (letter, document requests)
10. Cambridge Analytica (letter, document requests)
11. Carter Page (letter, document requests)
12. Columbus Nova (letter, document requests)
13. Concord Management and Consulting (letter, document requests)
14. Corey Lewandowski (letter, document requests)
15. David Pecker (letter, document requests)
16. Department of Justice (letter, document requests)
17. Don McGahn (letter, document requests)
18. Donald J Trump Revocable Trust (letter, document requests)
19. Donald Trump Jr. (letter, document requests)
20. Dylan Howard (letter, document requests)
21. Eric Trump (letter, document requests)
22. Erik Prince (letter, document requests)
23. Federal Bureau of Investigation (letter, document requests)
24. Felix Sater (letter, document requests)
25. Flynn Intel Group (letter, document requests)
26. General Services Administration (letter, document requests)
27. George Nader (letter, document requests)
28. George Papadopoulos (letter, document requests)
29. Hope Hicks (letter, document requests)
30. Irakly Kaveladze (letter, document requests)
31. Jared Kushner (letter, document requests)
32. Jason Maloni (letter, document requests)
33. Jay Sekulow (letter, document requests)
34. Jeff Sessions (letter, document requests)
35. Jerome Corsi (letter, document requests)
36. John Szobocsan (letter, document requests)
37. Julian Assange (letter, document requests)
38. Julian David Wheatland (letter, document requests)
39. Keith Davidson (letter, document requests)
40. KT McFarland (letter, document requests)
41. Mark Corallo (letter, document requests)
42. Matt Tait (letter, document requests)
43. Matthew Calamari (letter, document requests)
44. Michael Caputo (letter, document requests)
45. Michael Cohen (letter, document requests)
46. Michael Flynn (letter, document requests)
47. Michael Flynn Jr (letter, document requests)
48. Paul Erickson (letter, document requests)
49. Paul Manafort (letter, document requests)
50. Peter Smith (Estate) (letter, document requests)
51. Randy Credico (letter, document requests)
52. Reince Priebus (letter, document requests)
53. Rhona Graff (letter, document requests)
54. Rinat Akhmetshin (letter, document requests)
55. Rob Goldstone (letter, document requests)
56. Roger Stone (letter, document requests)
57. Ronald Lieberman (letter, document requests)
58. Sam Nunberg (letter, document requests)
59. SCL Group Limited (letter, document requests)
60. Sean Spicer (letter, document requests)
61. Sheri Dillon (letter, document requests)
62. Stefan Passantino (letter, document requests)
63. Steve Bannon (letter, document requests)
64. Ted Malloch (letter, document requests)
65. The White House (letter, document requests)
66. Trump Campaign (letter, document requests)
67. Trump Foundation (letter, document requests)
68. Trump Organization (letter, document requests)
69. Trump Transition (letter, document requests)
70. Viktor Vekselberg (letter, document requests)
71. Wikileaks (letter, document requests)
72. 58th Presidential Inaugural Committee (letter, document requests)
73. Christopher Bancroft Burnham (letter, document requests)
74. Frontier Services Group (letter, document requests)
75. J.D. Gordon (letter, document requests)
76. Kushner Companies (letter, document requests)
77. NRA (letter, document requests)
78. Rick Gates (letter, document requests)
79. Tom Barrack (letter, document requests)
80. Tom Bossert (letter, document requests)
81. Tony Fabrizio (letter, document requests)