House Democrats have a new strategy to circumvent the administration’s stonewalling of their investigatory efforts: they’ll call witnesses who never even worked at the White House.
According to Politico, they want to dodge Trump’s executive privilege claims by calling the likes of former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, former campaign chairman Paul Manafort and former deputy campaign chairman Rick Gates.
However, the President’s lawyers seem to be setting the foundation to block those witnesses as well, judging by the claims they’re making in another matter.
“The Executive Branch’s confidentiality interests are not limited solely to communications directly involving the President and other Executive Branch officials,” Michael Purpura, deputy White House counsel, wrote in a letter to the House Oversight Committee. “Rather, a President and his senior advisers must frequently consult with individuals outside of the Executive Branch, and those communications are also subject to protection.”
Former White House communications director Hope Hicks is due to testify in a closed-door session before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, despite the administration’s best efforts to shield her.
