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With Sweeping Document Request,

Democrats Launch Broad Trump
Corruption Inquiry
Representative Jerrold Nadler, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, outlined his
investigation into obstruction of justice by President Trump on Monday.CreditTom
Brenner for The New York Times
 Image

Representative Jerrold Nadler, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, outlined his

investigation into obstruction of justice by President Trump on
Monday.CreditCreditTom Brenner for The New York Times
By Nicholas Fandos
 March 4, 2019
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WASHINGTON — The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee delivered a flurry of

document demands to the executive branch and the broader Trump world on Monday
that detailed the breadth of the Democrats’ investigation into possible obstruction of
justice, corruption and abuse of power by President Trump and his administration.

In the two months since they took control of the House, Democrats have begun
investigating members of the president’s cabinet, his businesses, his campaign, his
inaugural committee and his ties to key foreign powers, including Russia and its
attempts to disrupt the 2016 presidential election.
But Representative Jerrold Nadler of New York, the Judiciary Committee chairman,
made clear on Monday that the new majority intends to train its attention on actions at
the heart of Mr. Trump’s norm-bending presidency — actions that could conceivably
form the basis of a future impeachment proceeding.

The letters from Mr. Nadler, dated March 4, went to 81 agencies, individuals and other
entities tied to the president, including the Trump Organization, the Trump campaign,
the Trump Foundation, the presidential inaugural committee, the White House, the
Justice Department, the F.B.I. and dozens of the president’s closest aides who counseled
him as he launched attacks against federal investigations into him and his associates,
the press, and the federal judiciary. The committee will also investigate accusations of
corruption, including possible violations of campaign finance law, the Constitution’s ban
on foreign emoluments and the use of office for personal gain.
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In a statement released Monday, Mr. Nadler said that it was imperative to “begin
building the public record” of what he has contended are Mr. Trump’s abuses. He
acknowledged that his work could replicate that of the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller
III, who is also studying whether Mr. Trump obstructed justice, as well as federal
prosecutors in New York.

But those are criminal cases, and aides to the committee noted that Congress has
different evidentiary standards than the Justice Department when it comes to potential
wrongdoing.

“We will act quickly to gather this information, assess the evidence, and follow the facts
where they lead with full transparency with the American people,” Mr. Nadler said in his
statement. “This is a critical time for our nation, and we have a responsibility to
investigate these matters and hold hearings for the public to have all the facts. That is
exactly what we intend to do.”

Mr. Nadler did not mention the word impeachment in any of Monday’s documents, but
its specter hangs heavily over Democratic leaders.

In an interview with The New York Times last week, Mr. Nadler said that he believed
Mr. Trump had committed crimes while in office and had threatened basic
constitutional norms, but he added that he would need to see an overwhelming,
bipartisan case against the president before pursuing a step as disruptive as
impeachment. He said he did not yet see such a case.
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Monday’s requests could build that case. Twice in the past half century, the House
Judiciary Committee has drawn up impeachment articles based, in part, on the same
themes that Mr. Nadler laid out: obstruction of justice and abuse of power.
The president and the White House have repeatedly rejected accusations of wrongdoing,
arguing that the president is innocent of many accusations and has broad powers in his
office to run the government as he chooses.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, confirmed on Monday that
the White House had received a document request from the committee.

“The counsel’s office and relevant White House officials will review it and respond at the
appropriate time,” she said.

Republicans assert that Democrats have already decided to target Mr. Trump for
impeachment, saying repeatedly in recent weeks that despite public statements to the
contrary, the new majority is determined to kick Mr. Trump out of office. (Even if the
House were to impeach Mr. Trump, the Republican-controlled Senate would have to
hold a trial and is unlikely to remove the president without an overwhelming case of
wrongdoing.)

Committees in both the House and Senate have nibbled around the edges of several of
the episodes raised by Mr. Nadler. But his investigation suggests a more coherent, deep
investigation of the firing of James B. Comey as F.B.I. director; Mr. Trump’s attempts to
remove the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III; his apparent dangling of pardons and
threatening of witnesses to the investigation; and other events.

From Donald F. McGahn II, the former White House counsel, alone, Mr. Nadler
requested all documents related to the resignation of Michael T. Flynn as national
security adviser, the firing of Mr. Comey, attempts to fire Mr. Mueller, communications
with Mr. Trump about Jeff Sessions, the president’s first attorney general, and about
ongoing investigations into his presidency.
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Mr. Nadler also requested documents from Annie Donaldson, Mr. McGahn’s deputy
who took exhaustive notes detailing Mr. Trump’s behavior in the West Wing in real
time.

Other targets include David J. Pecker, chairman of American Media Inc., which
publishes the National Enquirer; Allen Weisselberg, the chief financial officer of the
Trump Organization; Alan Garten, its lawyer; Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-
law; Mr. Sessions; and Thomas J. Barrack Jr., a close associate of Mr. Trump who led
his inaugural committee.

A counsel to the Judiciary Committee said on Monday that response to the letters would
determine who and when the committee calls to testify. Lawyers for Mr. Nadler are
prepared for protracted negotiations and fights over certain requests.

If the recipients of the requests do not voluntarily comply, Mr. Nadler will probably
issue subpoenas to compel them. But even if he does, there are practical limitations that
could significantly slow his efforts if a witness were to challenge the subpoena in court.
 And the White House could claim executive privilege to try to protect many of the
materials central to the committee’s inquiry, including communications between Mr.
Trump, Mr. McGahn and other advisers.
Correction: March 4, 2019

An earlier version of this article misstated the suffix of a former White House counsel.
He is Donald F. McGahn II, not III.

Get politics and Washington news updates via Facebook, Twitter and the Morning Briefing
newsletter.

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