President Donald J. Trump addresses his remarks Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020 in the East Room of the White House, in response to being acquitted of two impeachment charges. (Video screenshot)
The Democrats' latest campaign to impeach President Trump is hinged on a request that the Supreme Court release secret grand jury testimony obtained during special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation of now-debunked claims of Trump 2016 campaign collusion with Russia.
A lawyer for House Democrats has asked the Supreme Court to release the material to the House Judiciary Committee, the Washington Examiner reported.
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"The Mueller Report grand-jury material remains central to the committee's ongoing inquiry into the president's conduct," the submission from lawyer Douglas Letter said.
"If this material reveals new evidence supporting the conclusion that President Trump committed impeachable offenses that are not covered by the articles adopted by the House, the committee will proceed accordingly – including, if necessary, by considering whether to recommend new articles of impeachment," the lawyer told the court.
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A number of Democratic officials have discussed impeaching the president since before he even was inaugurated. Last winter, the Democrats' partisan impeachment failed when the Senate acquitted Trump on all counts.
The House committee has requested the redacted grand jury material from Mueller' probe, which "did not establish that members of the Trump campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government." The special counsel also presented what he described as evidence of obstruction of justice but left it to Attorney General William Barr and Assistant Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to decide whether or not the evidence was sufficient to bring obstruction charges. They decided it was not.
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Lower courts, in conflicting opinions, have agreed the Democrats should have access to the grand jury material, but the administration has appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Democrats told the Supreme Court that delaying the petition could "endanger" the committee's ability to complete its "impeachment investigation" until after the current Congress ends in January.
The Democrats, who repeatedly have leaked information about Trump to media, said they wanted the grand jury material without delay, and they have "procedures" that would protect confidentiality.
They already have obtained access to other redacted material in Mueller's 448-page report.
Court observers have warned of the precedent the Democrats are setting for perpetual impeachment investigations.
