|
In
the letter, U.S. National Archivist David Ferriero said Biden
had declined to use a presidential power known as executive
privilege to keep the Trump records confidential.
The letter is consistent with Biden's earlier statements that it
is in the country's best interests for Congress to obtain Trump
White House records relating to the events of Jan. 6, 2021.
Ferriero's letter said the U.S. National Archives will deliver
the latest batch of records to the committee on April 28. The
letter did not say what types of records would be transmitted,
but the committee has previously obtained speech drafts, call
and visitor logs, handwritten notes and other files.
The National Archives, a federal agency that maintains
presidential records, has already turned over hundreds of pages
of documents to the House of Representatives Select Committee
investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack.
Trump and his allies have waged an ongoing legal battle seeking
to block access to documents and witnesses. Trump has sought to
invoke executive privilege, which protects the confidentially of
some internal White House communications.
The U.S. Supreme Court in January rejected a request by Trump to
block the release of a tranche of White House records sought by
the congressional panel.
Only one of the court's nine members, conservative Justice
Clarence Thomas, publicly noted disagreement with the decision.
The Select Committee has said it needs the records to understand
any role Trump may have played in fomenting the violence that
unfolded on Jan. 6, 2021. His supporters stormed the Capitol in
a failed bid to prevent Congress from certifying Biden's 2020
presidential election victory over Trump.
(Reporting by Jan Wolfe; editing by Jonathan Oatis and David
Gregorio)
[© 2022 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
