White House tells Hope Hicks not to comply with Congress' subpoena for documents

The White House has instructed two former aides, Hope Hicks and Annie Donaldson, not to turn over documents to Congress in response to a subpoena, NBC News reports.

Hicks, former White House director of communications, and Annie Donaldson, former chief of staff to former White House counsel Don McGahn, received subpoenas in May from the House Judiciary Committee for testimony and documents as part of its ongoing investigation into President Trump, with the committee setting a June 4 deadline for the documents. Hicks and Donaldson have now been instructed not to turn over documents related to their time in the administration, with the White House mentioning executive privilege as a reason not to do so while not asserting executive privilege, reports CNN.

Judiciary Committee Chair Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) blasted Trump in a statement, saying that the president has "no lawful basis for preventing these witnesses from complying with our request." Nadler did say, however, that Hicks has agreed to turn over some documents related to her time working for the Trump 2016 presidential campaign. "I thank her for that show of good faith," Nadler said.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

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.

Sign up

This is the latest move from the White House to block the Judiciary Committee's investigation, with McGahn having previously been instructed not to turn over documents or testify. The House plans to vote to hold McGahn in contempt, and when CNN asked Nadler whether Hicks and Donaldson will be held in contempt as well if they rebuff Congress' subpoena, he said, "I assume so."