House committee issues subpoenas; Comey OK’d to testify,
Investigation into Trump’s possible Russian ties continues
WASHINGTON — The House intelligence committee said Wednesday it is issuing subpoenas for former national security adviser Michael Flynn and President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, as well as their businesses, as part of its investigation of Russian activities during last year’s election.
In addition to those four subpoenas, the committee has issued three others — to the National Security Agency, the FBI and the CIA — for information about requests that government officials made to “unmask” the identities of U.S. individuals named in classified intelligence reports, according to a congressional aide.
The subpoenas were announced as the special counsel overseeing the government’s investigation of possible Trump campaign ties to Russia has approved former FBI Director James Comey to testify before the Senate intelligence committee, according to a Comey associate.
Senators expect Mr. Comey to testify next week. Putting the highly anticipated hearing on the calendar is viewed as having the potential to force Mr. Trump to decide whether to invoke executive privilege and try to prevent Mr. Comey from testifying.
At a Wednesday briefing, press secretary Sean Spicer said inquiries about the Russia investigation must be directed to Marc Kasowitz, another of Mr. Trump’s personal attorneys. It marked the first time the White House had officially acknowledged that outside counsel had been retained. Calls and emails to Mr. Kasowitz’s New York firm were not immediately returned Wednesday.
The Comey associate, who wasn’t authorized to discuss details of the testimony and spoke on condition of anonymity, declined to discuss the content of Mr. Comey’s planned testimony. The associate did say that Robert Mueller, whom the Justice Department appointed earlier this month to lead the government’s inquiry, is allowing Mr. Comey to make certain statements.
Associates have said Mr. Comey wrote memos describing certain interactions with Mr. Trump that gave him pause in the months after the election, including details of a dinner in which he claimed the president asked him to pledge his loyalty, and a request to shut down the investigation of Mr. Flynn.
Courts have recognized a president’s constitutional right to keep his discussions a secret in most instances. A White House spokeswoman had no comment on whether Mr. Trump planned to try to block Mr. Comey’s testimony. It is perceived to be a delicate decision with political and legal consequences.
A spokesman for Mr. Mueller, a former FBI director, declined to comment. Mr. Mueller’s separate probe could conceivably look at the circumstances surrounding Mr. Comey’s firing.
Congress is currently out of session. It resumes Tuesday. No date for Mr. Comey’s testimony has been set.
The House panel pursuing its own investigation of the Trump campaign and possible Russia ties has also sought information from Mr. Comey, asking the FBI to turn over documents related to his interactions with both the White House and the Justice Department.
Subpoenas were approved Wednesday for Mr. Flynn and his company, Flynn Intel Group, and Mr. Cohen and his firm, Michael D. Cohen & Associates.
Mr. Cohen, who had refused an earlier request for information, saying it was “not capable of being answered,” told The Associated Press on Wednesday, “If subpoenaed,I will work with my lawyers to cooperate with the various investigations.”
The subpoenas sent to government agencies were related to Mr. Trump’s complaints that Obama administration officials had asked, for political reasons, to be told the names of Trump associates documented in intelligence reports.
In related news, Mr. Trump on Wednesday accused Democrats of resisting testimony from Carter Page — a former campaign adviser whose interactions with Russia are under investigation — because he “blows away” allegations they have made.