Only a guilty man would be fighting this hard to keep documents secret. An innocent man would have no trouble turning over documents because there would be nothing to see.
Appeals court: 'There is a direct linkage' between Trump and Capitol riotsThe United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has delivered a unanimous ruling rejecting former President Donald Trump's efforts to keep archived White House records away from the House Select Committee investigating the January 6th Capitol riots.
One particularly notable part of the ruling comes in the three-judge panel's explanation for why Congress is fully justified in seeking Trump's White House records, as the judges argue that Congress has a direct interest in investigating an attack launched against it.
"The January 6th Committee has also demonstrated a sound factual predicate for requesting these presidential documents specifically," the court writes. "There is a direct linkage between the former President and the events of the day."
The judges then explain how Trump's rhetoric incited supporters to commit acts of violence.
"Then-President Trump called for his supporters to gather in Washington, D.C. for a 'wild' response to what he had been alleging for months was a stolen election," the court argues. "On January 6th, President Trump directed his followers to go to the Capitol and 'fight' for their Country with the aim of preventing Congress’s certification of the electoral vote."
The court also argues that congressional investigators need information about what the White House knew about potential threat assessments leading up to the riot, as the White House serves as "the hub for intelligence about threats of violent action against the government, and the Executive Branch is in charge of federal law enforcement and mobilizing the National Guard to defend the Capitol."
Read the whole ruling here (PDF).
https://www.rawstory.com/trump-appeals-court-ruling/'No basis': Appeals court unanimously rejects Trump effort to keep Jan. 6 documents secretA federal appeals court has rejected former President Donald Trump's effort to block a House committee from obtaining his White House records related to Jan. 6.
"On the record before us, former President Trump has provided no basis for this court to override President Biden’s judgment and the agreement and accommodations worked out between the Political Branches over these documents," a three-judge panel of the appeals court wrote in a unanimous 68-page decision issued Thursday afternoon.
“Both Branches agree that there is a unique legislative need for these documents and that they are directly relevant to the Committee’s inquiry into an attack on the Legislative Branch and its constitutional role in the peaceful transfer of power," the panel wrote in an opinion drafted by Judge Patricia Millett.
Trump appealed a Nov. 9 decision by U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, who rejected his claim that the records are protected by executive privilege.
“Presidents are not kings, and Plaintiff is not President,” Chutkan wrote.
After the House Select Committee investigating the insurrection requested the documents, Trump sued, demanding that hundreds of pages of his White House call and visitor logs, emails, draft speeches, and notes be kept secret.
Trump is expected to appeal Thursday's decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Read the full 68-page decision from the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia here.
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