Donald Trump really, really doesn’t want the committee investigating Jan. 6 to get ahold of White House records.
He might not be able to do anything about it.
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday denied his latest attempt to block the committee from obtaining the material. Trump has been arguing that he can conceal the documents under executive privilege, but it’s typically up to the current president whether to honor such a claim. In October, and Biden officially rejected Trump’s attempts to make it.
“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,” the court wrote in its 3-0 decision on Thursday.
NOW: The DC Circuit rules against Trump is in his quest to stop the Jan. 6 committee from getting his archived White House records. Judgment just came in, waiting on the full opinion, more to come. Court gives Trump 14 days to petition SCOTUS. pic.twitter.com/hF3tnVzbtm
— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) December 9, 2021
Federal Judge Tanya Chutkan initially rejected Trump’s request to block the National Archives from sending the documents to the committee last month, prompting his appeal to the D.C. Circuit Court. Trump will now have two weeks to petition the Supreme Court. Otherwise, the National Archives will fork over a trove of sensitive material the committee hopes will shed light on Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, and the extent to which he may be responsible for the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.