The DOJ’s subpoena came after Trump became unhappy with Don McGahn as he tried to pressure him to cover up his request to fire Robert Mueller
The pursuit was under a nondisclosure order until May, indicating the Justice Department went to a judge multiple times to keep it secret throughout former President Donald Trump’s years in office.
It is extraordinary to subpoena a White House counsel’s records.
The DOJ’s move also happened a few weeks after Trump became unhappy with McGahn as he tried to pressure McGahn to cover up his request to fire then-special counsel Robert Mueller, a pivotal move of Trump’s that added fuel to Mueller’s investigation into whether Trump obstructed justice.
The subpoena for McGahn’s records did not come from Mueller’s team of investigators, the source added.
There’s no indication at this time whether the pursuit of McGahn’s records was politically motivated, or what possible case investigators were pursuing.
Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions and former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein were not aware of this request for information related to McGahn and his wife, according to another source familiar.
Thursday’s revelations about prosecutors seeking records for members of the House Intelligence Committee have led top congressional Democrats to call on former Attorneys General Sessions and William Barr to testify on the matter.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Sunday demanded Senate Republicans join Democrats to subpoena Barr and Sessions, as well as John Demers, the assistant attorney general in charge of the Justice Department’s national security division. Key Republicans have mostly issued statements focusing on the potential leaks DOJ was investigating rather than the methods, and withheld judgment on whether the department was following the rules.
“This is not just some kind of Washington insider thing,” Schumer said at a Sunday news conference in New York City. “It’s about people’s phone records being subpoenaed without them even knowing about it, and who knows who would be next. Everyday Americans are appalled by the notion that any President via their political appointees could manipulate the democratic system, and tap into personal phone data — that’s not American. What has happened here are fingerprints of a dictatorship, not a democracy.”
Sessions — the attorney general at the time of the Apple subpoena — was recused from all matters related to the Russia probe so a related leak investigation would have fallen under Rosenstein, CNN has reported.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
Paula Reid contributed to this report.
