U.S. President Joe Biden speaks about coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines and booster shots in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., September 24, 2021. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
WASHINGTON, Sept 24 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden's administration will work to avoid blocking requests for former President Donald Trump's records in an investigation into the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, the White House said on Friday.
"The president has already concluded that it would not be appropriate to assert executive privilege," said White House press secretary Jen Psaki. "And so, we will respond promptly to these questions as they arise."
Psaki said requests from the U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee investigating the Capitol attack would be reviewed with "an eye to not asserting executive privilege," a legal principle that allows the president to shield some confidential information.
An administration official later said questions of executive privilege would be evaluated on "a case-by-case basis, as Jen noted."
A mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 as Congress was meeting to certify Democrat Biden's election victory, delaying that process for several hours as then-Vice President Mike Pence, members of Congress, staff and journalists fled from rioters.
The House committee has subpoenaed four members of Trump's administration, including Mark Meadows and Steve Bannon, the panel's chairman said on Thursday. read more
Trump said he would fight the subpoenas and records request using executive privilege and other grounds. A spokesman for the Republican ex-president said on Friday the committee has put forth an overly broad request for records that lacks legal precedent.
"Executive privilege will be defended," said Taylor Budowich, a spokesperson for Trump's Save America political action committee.
Executive privilege allows the White House to refuse demands for records such as congressional subpoenas. The legal principle is rooted in the idea that some privacy should be given to presidential advisers so they can have candid discussions.
Reporting by Steve Holland and Doina Chiacu; Additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Leslie Adler and Diane Craft
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Whoshabooboo on September 24th, 2021 at 20:18 UTC »
Good. I didn't like when Obama basically gave GW a pass on all his administrations war crimes, but I understood he was under a microscope as the first Black President and was trying to get off to a smooth start. We have seen the GOP do not play in good faith and this is the most treasonous thing a sitting President has ever done. I don't think most of this country really grasps that they were trying to end our democracy. Those of us who frequent this sub clearly do, but the average American I don't think does. They have too much other shit they are worrying about and half don't even vote. It's time to show how much of a threat Trump and his cronies were to this country and its future as a democracy.
mayhapsintellectual on September 24th, 2021 at 19:59 UTC »
Friday afternoons are better when Donald Trump gets bad news.
ohnoh18 on September 24th, 2021 at 19:53 UTC »
reminder: there is no executive privilege for treason, there is no executive privilege for sedition