The case is a microcosm of the rancorous partisan divide in Washington
President Donald Trump and House Democrats don’t agree on much these days, but both sides will tell the Supreme Court during oral arguments Tuesday that the fate of four committee subpoenas could redraw the limits of congressional investigative power.
Trump’s personal lawyers and the Justice Department have warned the justices that Congress needs to be stopped. They say lower court rulings that allow the House to demand Trump’s personal and business financial information from an auditing firm and two banks will open up a new political weapon for Congress to harass a president and keep him from doing his job.
“This would grant Congress easy access to, among other things, the President’s financial, legal, medical, and educational records,” Trump’s lawyers wrote. “Given the temptation to investigate the personal lives of political rivals, legislative subpoenas targeting the private affairs of presidents will become routine in times of divided government.” Continue reading.