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letter sent on Thursday to the committee by lawyers for Fusion
GPS founder Glenn Simpson said their client will not give a
deposition in response to a committee subpoena.
"The committee's inquiry is not designed to discover the truth,"
Simpson's lawyers said in the letter to the committee's
chairman, Republican Representative Bob Goodlatte.
"The goal of this committee is to discredit and otherwise damage
witnesses to Russia's interference in the 2016 election, all as
part of an effort to protect" Trump, the letter said.
Goodlatte announced the subpoena last month after Simpson
refused the committee's request for an interview. The deposition
is scheduled for Oct. 16.
The committee could vote to hold Simpson in contempt of Congress
for refusing to testify.
The committee did not immediately respond to a request for
comment.
The letter said Simpson had voluntarily testified before three
congressional committees.
Fusion GPS was hired by lawyers for the Democratic Party and
Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign to conduct research
on Trump, her opponent.
The firm in turn hired Steele, a former British intelligence
officer, to produce a dossier that outlined alleged Russian
financial dealings with Trump and included salacious personal
details that remain unconfirmed.
The dossier was sent to the FBI, which already had launched an
investigation into whether Russia interfered with the election
and whether Trump campaign officials worked with Moscow to try
to sway the outcome.
The Kremlin denies meddling in the election. Trump, who denies
his campaign colluded with Russia, has called Steele's work an
"unverified and Fake Dirty Dossier" and has repeatedly denied
any collusion with Russia.
(Reporting by Mark Hosenball; Writing by Eric Beech; Editing by
Chris Reese)
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