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Trump White House lawyer among those targeted by Justice Department

McGahn is first Trump ally to be reported target of leak probe

John Bowden
Sunday 13 June 2021 12:58 EDT
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Former White House councel Don McGahn in Washington, D.C.
Former White House councel Don McGahn in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)

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Former White House councel Don McGahn was reportedly among those targeted by the Justice Department with a subpoena for his private information as it investigated leaks surrounding the investigation into former President Donald Trump and Russia.

The New York Times reported Sunday that Mr McGahn was informed one month ago that his records from an Apple account were subpoenaed in early 2018, though Mr McGahn was reportedly not told what specific information was shared with DOJ officials.

Little is reportedly known about the subpoena, other than it was issued by a grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia, the Times reported.

Mr McGahn did not immediately return a request for comment, but an attorney for the former White House councel declined to comment to the Times.

The Independent has also reached out to Apple and the Department of Justice for comment.

News of his involvement in the leak investigation comes after it was reported Thursday by the Times that Rep Adam Schiff, the Democratic head of the House Intelligence Committee, as well as another Democrats and their respective staffs and families had been targeted by subpoenas for their phone records as the DOJ sought to uncover who was providing information to the media about investigations into the former president’s dealings in Russia.

The virtually-unprecedented investigation of the president’s political rivals and their families, which did not appear to turn up any criminal activities, sent shockwaves through Washington over the weekend and led to furious House Democrats demanding answers and questioning whether Republicans would endure similar treatment unchallenged.

“My Republican friends need to ask themselves if under a Democratic president they would be comfortable with them being exposed and their children being exposed because some assistant U.S. attorney tells the grand jury that we’re going after the potential of a leak,” warned Rep. Jim Himes, another Democrat on the Intelligence Committee, in an interview on CNN Saturday.

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