legal limbo
Trump's lawyers reportedly lack the security clearances needed to advise him on the Mueller probe
President Trump's legal team doesn't have the security clearances necessary for a possible interview between the president and Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigators, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.
Sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that only John Dowd, Trump's former lead attorney, had security clearance that would allow him to sit in on any discussions regarding possible collusion and obstruction of justice. The special counsel's probe, which is investigating whether the Trump campaign played a role in Russian interference in the 2016 election, involves classified information, and none of Trump's current lawyers have been cleared to discuss it.
Dowd resigned from the president's legal team in March, reportedly because Trump wanted to sit down for an interview with Mueller and Dowd disagreed. Jay Sekulow, Trump's new lead lawyer in the Russia investigation, does not have security clearance for the role yet, reports Bloomberg.
Mueller told Dowd that he would consider issuing a subpoena for the president to appear before a grand jury if Trump declined an interview, The Washington Post reported Tuesday. In an interview, Trump could bring his attorneys, but they would need full security clearance to hear classified information. If subpoenaed, he would not be allowed to bring a lawyer before a grand jury. Read more at Bloomberg.