Hicks dodges panel’s queries

WASHINGTON — White House Communications Director Hope Hicks declined Tuesday to answer questions from the House Intelligence Committee about her work since President Donald Trump was inaugurated.

That means Hicks wouldn’t talk about the drafting of a controversial statement concerning a meeting at Trump Tower between Donald Trump Jr., the president’s oldest son, and a Russian lawyer offering dirt on Hillary Clinton during the 2016 campaign.

The statement, issued last July when news of the June 2016 meeting came to light, falsely said the meeting was about adoption policies.

Hicks’ refusal, and Republicans’ unwillingness to subsequently issue a subpoena to compel her testimony, frustrated Democrats on the committee.

“This is an effort to continue to put off this committee,” said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, one of three panels investigating Russian interference in the presidential campaign.

Much like Hicks, former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon wouldn’t talk about his work in the White House during his closed-door testimony.

But unlike Hicks, one of the president’s closest and longest-serving aides, Republicans were willing to issue a subpoena to Bannon, who has fallen out of favor with Trump.

“Apparently there’s one rule for Steve Bannon and one rule for everybody else,” Schiff said.