EXCLUSIVE: Prosecutors prepare for court battle to force former White House officials to testify

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: CNN

(CNN) Justice Department prosecutors are preparing to fight in court to force former White House officials to testify about then-President Donald Trump's conversations and actions around January 6, according to people briefed on the matter.

At issue are claims of executive privilege that prosecutors expect the former president to make in order to shield some information from the federal grand jury as the criminal investigation moves deeper into the ranks of White House officials who directly interacted with Trump. DOJ's preemptive move is the clearest sign yet that federal investigators are homing in on Trump's conduct as he tried to prevent the transfer of power to Joe Biden.

An executive privilege court fight would immediately put the Justice Department's investigation into a more aggressive stance than even the Mueller investigation -- a major years-long criminal probe into Trump while he was President. He was not ultimately charged. Attorney General Merrick Garland has made clear in public remarks that Trump is not beyond the reach of the investigation because of his status as a former president.  He has also stressed they are taking care to "get this right."

Confronting the privilege issue reflects the care with which the Justice Department is taking as it faces the unusual situation of investigating of a former president for actions taken while in office. And it could bring about one of the first major court fights over the separation of powers in the January 6 criminal investigation.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/28/politics/doj-court-trump-january-6-executive-privilege/index.html

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Full headline: EXCLUSIVE: Prosecutors prepare for court battle to force former White House officials to testify about Trump's January 6 conversations

[grumpyduck]

1. Glad to hear this is being announced,

or leaked, or whatever. IOW, they're sharpening their teeth.

Be afraid, repukes, be very afraid.

[gohuskies]

2. DOJ should rescind their opinion sitting presidents are unindictable

That short sighted opinion allowed the most corrupt president in US history to almost end democracy in America. This slide towards fascism will remain a threat until that opinion is discarded.

[Marcuse]

9. As I recall the issue then was whether a VP (not the POTUS) could be indicted.

The AG’s opinion was that Agnew could be indicted because it wasn’t as if he was the President. The opinion did not specifically analyze the issue of indicting a President.

[paleotn]

3. Pin him to purposefully committing crimes,

which up to now are only crimes of omission. Omission is far easier to weasel out of with good legal representation. Commission is a different story.

[Samrob]

4. Trump has no executive privilege. nt

[RainCaster]

5. or conscience

[Gore1FL]

6. I am confused as how this is a separation of powers issue.

The DOJ is part of the executive branch.

[SergeStorms]

7. I'm watching, "All the President's Men" on HBO....

on demand right now. Reliving the days when we had real investigative reporters and journalists working for newspapers. It's almost starting to feel that way again, after so many years of reporting being a dead-end job.

The sharks are circling Trump right now, and if he isn't worried, he should be.

Republicans have been interfering with elections for close to 60 years now. Think of where this country - the world - would be right now if republicans played fair.

Go get these bastards, DOJ.

[BOSSHOG]

8. Remember when Hillary Clinton fought like hell and refused to testify

For the incredibly bogus Benghazi hearings … Nor do I

She testified. For 11 plus hours. And all the brilliant minds in the gop got out of it was six plus years of headaches and lies. And counting.

Josh hawley should consult with Hillary about his book “manhood.”

Isn’t it a beautiful sight that the ones kicking trumps ass calmly and collectively are mostly women? You Go Girls !

[Martin68]

10. C'mon! It has been a tooth and claw fight with every witness from the beginning. The closer it gets

to Trump, the harder they will fight, and the tougher the going will be. This is an existential battle for the soul of the United States. What we've got going for us is the the wall of silence has been broken and the rats are beginning to abandon a sinking ship.