Former President Donald Trump has never been secretive about his efforts to avoid any and all accountability or oversight.
Trump repeatedly sought to discredit investigations into his campaign's contacts with Russia, his pressure on the Ukrainian President, and a host of other scandals. Trump and his officials routinely defied congressional subpoenas and document requests, hindering Congress' role in holding the executive branch accountable.
After Trump's lies about the 2020 election prompted a mob of his extremist supporters to mount a deadly, failed insurrection against the United States Capitol, the former President once again blasted calls for an investigation and his subsequent (second) impeachment.
Now, a newly-revealed letter shows the lengths to which Trump and his allies are going to obstruct the investigation of the Capitol riots.
The House Select committee investigating the events before and during January 6 recently issued subpoenas to multiple Trump administration officials and allies, ordering them to turn over documents and testify.
Now, according to reporting from Politico's Betsy Woodruff Swan, a Trump lawyer wrote a letter to those subpoenaed, instructing them not to cooperate with Congress's demands.
The letter cites executive privilege, claiming Trump's conversations with officials are confidential and protected from congressional oversight. This is despite the Biden administration saying it wouldn't extend executive privilege to Trump-era documents. What's more, at least one of those subpoenaed—Steve Bannon—wasn't working in the White House when the riots unfolded, but instead peddling Trump's election lies as a private citizen.
People surmised that the letter amounted to obstruction of justice.
Though Trump's allies have repeatedly dismissed the role his actions played in sparking the riots, people think a deeper investigation would reveal the scope of Trump's culpability.
It's unclear how Congress intends to enforce the subpoenas.
