Documents show Trump, allies pressed DOJ to overturn 2020 election -U.S. House Oversight panel

[June 15, 2021]  WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Documents obtained from the U.S. Department of Justice detail efforts by then President Donald Trump, his chief of staff and other allies to pressure the department to challenge the 2020 presidential election results, a U.S. House panel said on Tuesday.

The House Oversight and Reform Committee, which sought the records from the Justice Department, outlined a series of overtures from Trump, top aide Mark Meadows and an outside private attorney pushing the department to act on the former Republican president's false election claims.

The documents come as U.S. lawmakers continue to investigate the Jan. 6 deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol by pro-Trump supporters seeking to thwart Congress' certification of Democrat Joe Biden's win.

"These documents show that President Trump tried to corrupt our nation’s chief law enforcement agency in a brazen attempt to overturn an election that he lost," Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney said.

President Donald Trump addresses the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) annual meeting at National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland, U.S., February 29, 2020. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas/File Photo

Their release comes ahead of the committee's hearing later on Tuesday with FBI director Christopher Wray, who testified before another House panel earlier this month, and General Charles Flynn, brother of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who has also advanced Trump's election conspiracy theories.

Representatives for Trump could not be immediately reached for comment.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Catherine Evans and Steve Orlofsky)

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