Aaron Reitz, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Texas, wrote to Sen. Richard Blumenthal on Wednesday and told him to preserve all records tied to his investigation into donors to President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom project. Reitz warned of “significant legal consequences” if Blumenthal does not confirm by 18 November that he has kept the material.
Reitz said in the letter that Blumenthal’s October letters to ballroom donors showed an intent to deprive citizens of their constitutional rights. He cited two federal civil rights statutes, 18 U.S.C. 241 and 242. Acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter backed the move in public comments, saying the Justice Department will defend speech and association rights against congressional action.
Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat and the ranking member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, is set to chair the panel in January. He answered that he “will not be intimidated” and called the letter an attempt to use the Justice Department to shield the administration from oversight. On Wednesday night he sent Reitz a letter of his own, telling him to preserve records about the drafting and sending of the demand.
Blumenthal has been asking who paid for the ballroom, a project funded by roughly $330 million to $400 million in private donations, according to reports on the dispute. A partial donor list has been released by the president. The letter is a preservation demand, not a charge, and no court filing has been made.
Source: Democracy Docket
