And it's only the beginning.
Congress may already be in possession of documents incriminating Trump, his family, and his top campaign officials.
In a statement released Monday, Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), chair of the House Judiciary Committee, said Congress now has tens of thousands of documents related to their investigation into public corruption, obstruction of justice, and abuse of power by Trump.
And this is just the beginning.
In early March, Nadler requested information from 81 individuals and entities as part of a broad investigation into Trump. At the time, Nadler criticized Republicans for their failure over the past two years to "conduct responsible oversight," adding, "Congress must provide a check on abuses of power."
The committee said that they have heard back from "a large number of recipients," and that many "have either sent or agreed to send documents" to the committee. In an MSNBC interview Monday evening, Nadler said that Trump's former campaign chair and White House chief of staff Steve Bannon turned over thousands of pages of documents to the committee.
For legal reasons, some recipients of the letter requested a subpoena from the committee before they are able to comply and send even more information to Nadler and his team.
"I am encouraged by the responses we have received since sending these initial letters two weeks ago," Nadler said in a statement. "It is my hope that we will receive cooperation from the remainder of the list, and will be working to find an appropriate accommodation with any individual who may be reluctant to cooperate with our investigation."
While many entities are cooperating with the investigation, Politico reports that Trump's personal lawyers are stonewalling Nadler's request. But Nadler is not backing down.
"Ultimately, people have to respond to us," Nadler told MSNBC, noting that in rare cases a president will invoke executive privilege. "They have no immunity," he said, adding, "they have to respond to us."
After two years of complicit cover-ups by the GOP-controlled Congress, voters in 2018 demanded a new majority that would hold Trump and his administration accountable. With tens of thousands of documents, Nadler is heeding the will of voters and showing what true oversight looks like.
Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.
