CONGRESSWOMAN SHEILA JACKSON LEE STATEMENT REGARDING ISSUANCE OF SUBPOENAS TO TRUMP ORGANIZATION
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Robin Chand
March 15, 2018 202-225-3816
Press Statement
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee Statement Regarding Issuance of Subpoenas to Trump Organization Relating to Russia and Other Matters Related to the Special Counsel Mueller’s Investigation
Jackson Lee: “Today’s news suggests that the Special Counsel is moving inexorably toward the truth Russia’s subversion activities during the 2016 election cycle and the extent to which the Trump campaign It is also clear that Trump is desperate to terminate the Special Counsel’s investigation, which makes it imperative for Congress immediately to enact legislation protecting the integrity and independence of the Special Counsel’s investigation.”
WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, a senior member of the House Committees on Judiciary and Homeland Security and Ranking Member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations released the following statement on the news that Special Counsel Robert Mueller has issued subpoenas demanding production of documents relating to Russia and the Trump Organization activities:
“Special Counsel Mueller’s investigation of Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election has now reached inside Trump Tower. The subpoenas issued by the Special Counsel to the Trump Organization demanding the production of document relating to Russia and other matter related to the investigation indicate that the Special Counsel is moving inexorably towards uncovering the truth about Russia’s interference in the 2016 election and the extent to which the Trump campaign may have been involved in those efforts.
“Since it is well known that the President is desperately wants the Special Counsel’s investigation to be scuttled, the revelation that the walls of Trump Tower have been breached underscores the urgency for Congress immediately to take up and pass H.R. 3654, the “Special Counsel Independence Protection Act,” which insulates the Special Counsel from arbitrary removal and interference by the President.
“This new turn in the Special Counsel’s investigation suggests that Trump may very well act to fire Special Counsel Mueller and may be getting closer to doing so. Last summer, the president indicated that the Special Counsel would cross a “red line” if his investigation touched on the Trump family finances. And we know from the public boasting of Donald Trump Jr. boasted that ‘Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets…we see a lot of our money come in from Russia.’
“The President has been saber-rattling about firing Special Counsel Mueller since right after he fired James Comey, the former FBI Director. In addition, it has been reported that the President pressured his White House Counsel and others to take action to end the Special Counsel’s Russia investigation. And, of course, the President has not ruled out removing Attorney General Sessions and replacing him with Attorney General who could oversee the Russia investigation and replace the Special Counsel.
“For these reasons, Congress must act swiftly to enact H.R. 3654, the “Special Counsel Independence Protection Act.” Specifically, this legislation which I introduced insulates the Special Counsel from interference and arbitrary action of the President by requiring that a Special Counsel may be removed only upon the following conditions:
- The attorney general files an action in federal district court in Washington, D.C., and files a contemporaneous action with the House Judiciary Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee; and
- A panel of three federal judges sitting in Washington, D.C., finds removal appropriate based on a finding of misconduct, dereliction of duty, incapacity, conflict of interest or other good cause.
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Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee is a Democrat from Texas’s 18th Congressional District. She is a senior member of the House Committees on Judiciary and Homeland Security and is a Ranking Member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations.