Blumenthal: Trump Jr. Testimony Leaves No Question He Must Be Subpoenaed

[WASHINGTON, DC] – U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) released the statement below today following reports that in testimony before the House Intelligence Committee, Donald Trump, Jr. claimed attorney-client privilege when withholding details of a conversations with his father, President Trump, regarding a meeting with Russian agents during the summer of 2016.

“This completely disingenuous, bogus claim of lawyer-client privilege leaves no question that Donald Trump, Jr. must be subpoenaed to testify in public, under oath,” Blumenthal said. “Spurious claims of privilege can never be a “get out of jail free” card. His defiance of Congress is an insult to elected officials on both sides of the aisle. No one is above the law, and he must be held accountable.”

On Tuesday, Blumenthal wrote Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley today asking that he immediately issue a subpoena for public testimony and documents from Donald Trump, Jr.

Trump, Jr. has thus far failed to fully comply with the Senate Judiciary Committee’s documents request, and initially withheld secret messages he exchanged with WikiLeaks during the 2016 presidential campaign. This follows a disturbing a pattern of Trump, Jr. giving incomplete or misleading statements about his involvement in communications with Russian agents. Despite Trump, Jr.’s refusal to cooperate with the Senate Judiciary Committee’s investigation, Chairman Grassley has taken no action to compel his testimony or ensure that he has turned over all documents that fall within the Committee’s jurisdiction.

The full text of Blumenthal’s letter is available here.