White House won't assert privilege over Meadows documents
By Morgan Chalfant and Rebecca Beitsch - 11/11/21 02:26 PM EST
President Biden's White House does not plan to shield documents related to former President Trump’s ex-chief of staff Mark Meadows from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
White House deputy counsel Jonathan Su penned a letter to Meadows’ attorney on Thursday notifying him that President Biden would not assert executive privilege over the documents requested by the committee from Meadows, citing a “compelling need” by Congress to access the documents in the course of its investigation into the deadly attack.
“The President believes that the constitutional protections of executive privilege should not be used to shield information reflecting an effort to subvert the Constitution itself, and indeed believes that such an assertion in this circumstance would be at odds with the principles that underlie the privilege,” Su wrote in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Hill.
“Consistent with President Biden’s determination that an assertion of privilege is not justified with respect to testimony and documents relating to these particular subjects, he has determined that he will not assert executive privilege with respect to your client’s deposition testimony on these subjects, or any documents your client may possess that bear on them,” Su wrote. “For the same reasons, underlying his decisions on executive privilege, President Biden has determined that he will not assert immunity to preclude your client from testifying before the Select Committee.”
The committee in August asked the National Archives to turn over “all documents and communications within the White House on January 6, 2021, relating in any way” to Meadows, along with a long list of other White House employees.
more
https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/581165-white-house-wont-assert-privilege-over-meadows-documents-sought-by
