Democrats score legal victory in Trump's impeachment inquiry

WASHINGTON (AP) — A judge has ordered the United States (US) Justice Department to turn over to the House of Representatives secret grand jury testimony from special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.

The ruling is a major victory for Democrats as they seek to gather evidence for the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump.

US District Judge Beryl Howell ordered the Justice Department to hand over the materials by October 30 in a ruling yesterday that also affirmed the legality of the impeachment inquiry.

The Justice Department revealed, through a spokeswoman, that it is reviewing the decision.

The Trump administration can appeal.

The ruling comes as Democrats gather closed-door testimony from current and former government officials about the Trump administration’s efforts to get Ukraine to investigate political rival Joe Biden.

The materials covered by Howell’s order consist of redacted grand jury testimony mentioned in Mueller’s report.

The Justice Department says that information is the only piece of the document that key lawmakers have not had access to.

Democrats believe the still-redacted information could shed new light on key episodes of the investigation.

These include discussions Trump is reported to have had with associates about the release of stolen emails during the 2016 presidential campaign and conversations about a 2016 Trump Tower meeting at which the president’s eldest son was expecting to receive damaging information about Hillary Clinton.

The judge said the materials could help lawmakers as they decide which witnesses to call for an impeachment inquiry and what additional lines of investigation should be pursued.

In a 75-page ruling accompanying the order, Howell slashed through many of the administration’s arguments for withholding the materials from Congress, including the need for continued secrecy.

“The reality is that DOJ and the White House have been openly stonewalling the House’s efforts to get information by subpoena and by agreement and the White House has flatly stated that the administration will not cooperate with congressional requests for information,” Howell wrote.

The Justice Department asserted that under existing laws it could not provide grand jury material, but this was rejected by Howell.

“DOJ is wrong,” she wrote.

Responding to claims by the White House and its Republican allies that the impeachment is illegitimate without a formal vote, the judge said: “A House resolution has never, in fact, been required.”

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