Trump Issued Subpoena by Jan. 6 Panel, Setting Up Legal Battle
President Trump’s lawyers have made clear that a subpoena issued from the special counsel in the Russia investigation will be used to secure testimony from former national security adviser Michael Flynn and others, but it probably won’t be the first subpoena to be used in that court. The special counsel’s court filing says the lawyers in that case have yet to make recommendations on who will be subpoenaed.
The president’s lawyers are trying to get a first look at the document that will go before the grand jury to show that the White House is cooperating with the probe. They say they have the president’s emails and other documents for the first time.
The judge’s order to deliver the unredacted document to the grand jury, to the Trump lawyers, and to the American Bar Association was widely seen as a sign of how the Trump legal team plans to fight the subpoena.
The president’s lawyers will be able to review the document, and there’s little evidence that he would be harmed by the revelation, Trump tweeted on Friday. He noted that he was the subject of a court order earlier in the day, and he said he had “never authorized a single drop” of assistance to the special counsel.
The president’s lawyers filed a “Notice of Compliance” with the court Friday after a judge in New York granted them that ability. But they said it would be premature to take that step unless the grand jury has issued a subpoena for Flynn or other former officials.
The president’s lawyers on Friday suggested they would refuse the subpoena and say they intend to fight it anyway.
When a subpoena is issued from a federal grand jury, it is generally considered to be part of the investigation, even if the judge has not yet decided on a set of specific witnesses the judge wants to hear.
The order says the White House is willing to provide the unredacted version of the document because it is “consistent with the President’s constitutional and other powers to control information and evidence relevant to the investigation being conducted by the Special Counsel.” The unredacted version is likely to reveal information about Flynn’s conversations with the Russian ambassador.
The order does say the White House still has concerns about some of the requests.
The president’s lawyers have argued that the subpoena would violate the attorney-client privilege and work to obstruct the special counsel’s