WASHINGTON – Today, on behalf of prominent former officials of the Department of Justice who served under Republican Administrations, Constitutional Accountability Center filed a brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in support of the effort by the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack to obtain from the National Archives records of White House communications related to the events of January 6.

Signatories to the brief filed today are (with current institutional affiliations listed for identification purposes only):

Donald B. Ayer, Retired Partner, Jones Day; Deputy Attorney General, 1989-1990; Principal Deputy Solicitor General, 1986-1988; U.S. Attorney, E.D. Cal., 1982-1986

Stuart M. Gerson, Partner, Epstein Becker Green; P.C. Acting Attorney General of the United States, 1993; Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division, 1989-1993

Peter D. Keisler, Partner, Sidley Austin LLP; Acting Attorney General, 2007; Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division, 2003-2007

Carter Phillips, Partner, Sidley Austin LLP; Assistant to the Solicitor General, 1981-1984

Trevor Potter, President, Campaign Legal Center; Special Assistant to the Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Policy, 1982-1984

Constitutional Accountability Center President Elizabeth Wydra said, “The attack on the Capitol resulted in five deaths, at least 140 assaults, and the most significant destruction of the Capitol complex since the War of 1812, all in an attempt to subvert our constitutional democracy. It is critical that Congress be able to get to the bottom of what happened on that horrible day.

“The request for records made by members of the January 6 Committee, constituted by the House to investigate that terrible event, falls squarely within the power of Congress to investigate. Our brief explains in detail that the Committee’s request is valid, and former president Trump’s arguments that the documents should not be turned over are meritless. The D.C. Circuit should allow the Committee to access the materials it needs to conduct its investigation.”

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Resources:

CAC case page in Trump v. Thompson: https://www.theusconstitution.org/litigation/trump-v-thompson-january-6-select-committee-litigation/

CAC ISSUE BRIEF: The Historical and Legal Basis for the Exercise of Congressional Oversight Authority, January 30, 2019: https://www.theusconstitution.org/think_tank/issue-brief-the-historical-and-legal-basis-for-the-exercise-of-congressional-oversight-authority/

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Constitutional Accountability Center is a think tank, public interest law firm, and action center dedicated to fulfilling the progressive promise of the Constitution’s text and history. Visit CAC’s website at www.theusconstitution.org.

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