Litigation
Clarification of the Capitol attack: New setback for Trump
Light illuminates the Capitol dome on Capitol Hill. (Archive image) Photo: Patrick Semansky / AP / dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
Ex-US President Donald Trump is trying to prevent the release of documents to investigate the Capitol attack in January 2020. His objection on the question has now been dismissed in court.
In the legal dispute over the handover of documents for the processing of the attack on the Capitol, the former US President Donald Trump suffered another setback in court. A Washington appeals court on Thursday dismissed Trump’s appeal on the matter.
A federal court had previously dismissed a lawsuit Trump tried to prevent the disclosure of documents to the responsible investigative committee in Congress. In his lawsuit, Trump insisted on the so-called executive privilege. This is a US president’s prerogative to withhold certain information from Congress or the courts.
However, the court had stated that executive privilege existed to protect the government and not a single person who was also no longer president. The White House has already announced that Trump’s successor, Joe Biden, will not stop the transfer of documents from the National Archives.
Next stop: Supreme Court
The legal battle should now end up before the Supreme Court. Trump’s spokeswoman, Liz Harrington, wrote on Twitter that regardless of the appeals court’s decision, this case was intended for the Supreme Court from the start.
Supporters of Trump stormed the seat of the US Congress in the capital Washington on January 6th. Five people were killed, including a police officer. Trump had to face impeachment proceedings for the attack because he had previously incited his supporters in a speech. At the end of the trial, he was acquitted. The committee of inquiry in the House of Representatives is supposed to clarify the background to the attack on the Capitol.