House Intelligence Committee Investigating 4 Trump Family Attorneys For Potential Obstruction

The House Intelligence Committee is currently investigating lawyers connected to President Donald Trump, citing allegations they “reviewed, shaped and edited” testimony Micheal Cohen had delivered to Congress. Cohen, Trump’s former personal attorney and “fixer,” is currently serving a three-year federal prison sentence for lying to the Intelligence Committee and for committing financial crimes.

Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) is aiming to obtain information concerning Cohen’s claims and has requested documents and interviews from four attorneys who have worked for Trump and his family. The four lawyers have been identified as Abbe Lowell, Alan Futerfas, Alan Garten and Jay Sekulow.

On April 5, Schiff and the committee were told by the attorneys representing the Trump family’s attorneys that their request lacks a “proper legislative purpose.” Consequentially, all four have refused to cooperate with the House Intelligence Committee.

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“Instead of addressing important intelligence needs, the House Intelligence Committee appears to seek a truly needless dispute — this one with private attorneys — that would force them to violate privileges and ethical rules,” Patrick Strawbridge, Sekulow’s attorney, said in a statement representing the quartet. “As committed defense lawyers, we will respect the constitution and defend the attorney-client privilege — one of the oldest and most sacred privileges in the law.”

On May 3, Schiff wrote in a follow-up letter how a few of the four lawyers “may have engaged in discussions about potential pardons in an effort to deter one or more witnesses from cooperating with authorized investigations.” Schiff in turn suggested issuing subpoenas.

In his report, Special Counsel Robert Mueller wrote that Cohen maintained constant, near daily contact with Sekulow, who was Trump’s personal attorney throughout Mueller’s investigation. Mueller adds in his report that Cohen and Sekulow shared multiple phone conversations with each other prior to the day Cohen gave falsified testimony. Mueller asked Sekulow for information detailing his phone calls with Cohen. Sekulow declined, and the special counsel decided against following up on this issue.