Federal judge denies Trump's attempt to withhold records from January 6 committee
A federal judge will allow the US House to access hundreds of pages of documents from Donald Trump's presidency leading up to and about the January 6 attack at the US Capitol, in a forceful rejection of Trump's recent attempts to control information from his White House.
Posted — UpdatedThe ruling from Judge Tanya Chutkan of the US District Court in DC is a blow to Trump's efforts to keep more than 700 pages of records from his White House secret -- and the decision is likely to be appealed by his legal team.
Yet now, the National Archives remains on track to turn over to the House on Friday White House call logs, video logs and schedules related to January 6 as well as three pages of handwritten notes from Trump's then-chief of staff. The outcome in court also could help the House in its pursuit of more information from those around Trump, including witnesses who've been subpoenaed and haven't spoken to the committee yet.
The former Republican President filed his lawsuit last month in DC District Court, claiming executive privilege and alleging that the House's requests for documents are "unprecedented in their breadth and scope" and illegitimate.
The Biden White House has declined to intervene to block access to the Trump records. The National Archives, which inherited Trump's presidential records after he left office, has said it will begin handing over records to the House committee next week, on November 12, with more document productions set for later in November.
The case has already become an historic test of the power of a former president.
Some of the records Trump has sought to keep secret include White House visitor records, call logs, and notes from his top advisers related to his claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen and his reaction to the January 6 attack, according to a sworn declaration from the National Archives.
The House has argued to the court that Trump has no right to keep the documents confidential from his presidency and say the need for the records is to reconstruct Trump's actions on January 6 and his efforts to undermine the 2020 election.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
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