Judge Mehta cast serious doubt on the legal theories the Trump team is using in their effort to block a congressional subpoena for Trump’s financial records—but the judge declined to rule immediately from the bench
A federal judge raised pointed doubts Tuesday about arguments by President Donald Trump’s legal team that a Democratic effort to subpoena Trump’s financial records was an invalid exercise of congressional power.
Mehta cast serious doubt on those claims, suggesting at one point that investigations of such financial violations are “strictly” under Congress’ purview and that the courts have “very little, if any” discretion over Congress’ asks.POLITICO Playbook newsletterBy signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time.
“This Congress is limited in time. There’s obviously going to be appeals here. We just do not want there to be any lag in time,” Letter said. “We rushed and we briefed this case. We think it should be decided quickly. … Any delay here undermines the House’s ability to do what the Constitution allows it to do.”
Mehta’s ruling could provide a blueprint for other judges deciding on Trump’s attempts to thwart congressional investigations. Trump has also filed suit to block the House Intelligence and Financial Services Committees from subpoenaing Deutsche Bank and Capital One, where many of his business and personal financial records are housed.
“Say for example if a president had a financial interest in a particular piece of legislation that was being considered … in your view Congress could not investigate whether a president has a conflict of interest?” Mehta wondered.
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