In mid-October, Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team caught more than a dozen of President Trump's top campaign officials by surprise when he issued a subpoena requesting documents related to Russia, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Wall Street Journal on Thursday.
The officials had been sharing with the special counsel the same documents they were giving congressional committees investigating Russian meddling into last year's election, the person said. The subpoena, the first official order for information from Trump's campaign, did not compel any of the recipients to testify before Mueller's grand jury, the Journal reports. "Sending a subpoena to an entity that says it has been cooperating with document requests isn't unusual in cases in which prosecutors have some concern that their demands aren't being met promptly or aren't being entirely fulfilled," the Journal explains. "A subpoena can serve as a backup, to make sure the recipient is complying as promised, and as a reminder that failure to provide documents as demanded would count as obstructing a grand-jury investigation."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Political cartoons for December 6Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include a pardon for Hernandez, word of the year, and more
-
Pakistan: Trump’s ‘favourite field marshal’ takes chargeIn the Spotlight Asim Munir’s control over all three branches of Pakistan’s military gives him ‘sweeping powers’ – and almost unlimited freedom to use them
-
Codeword: December 6, 2025The daily codeword puzzle from The Week
-
Trump tightens restrictions for work visasSpeed Read The length of work permits for asylum seekers and refugees has been shortened from five years to 18 months
-
Supreme Court revives Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read Texas Republicans can use the congressional map they approved in August at President Donald Trump’s behest
-
Boat strike footage rattles some lawmakersSpeed Read ‘Disturbing’ footage of the Sept. 2 attack on an alleged drug-trafficking boat also shows the second strike that killed two survivors who were clinging to the wreckage
-
Trump boosts gas cars in fuel economy rollbackspeed read Watering down fuel efficiency standards is another blow to former President Biden’s effort to boost electric vehicles
-
Hegseth’s Signal chat put troops in peril, probe findsSpeed Read The defense secretary risked the lives of military personnel and violated Pentagon rules, says new report
-
Trump pardons Texas Democratic congressmanspeed read Rep. Henry Cuellar was charged with accepting foreign bribes tied to Azerbaijan and Mexico
-
GOP wins tight House race in red Tennessee districtSpeed Read Republicans maintained their advantage in the House
-
Trump targets ‘garbage’ Somalis ahead of ICE raidsSpeed Read The Department of Homeland Security will launch an immigration operation targeting Somali immigrants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area
