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US Dems Mull Subpoenaing Interpreters at Trump-Putin Helsinki Summit – Reports

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Lawyers for the House Intelligence and Foreign Affairs committees, now controlled by Democrats, will evaluate legal options for subpoenaing the interpreters who were present at the July meeting in Helsinki between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, media reports said on Monday.
Sputnik

No aides were present at the meeting, just an interpreter for each of the two leaders. The Washington Post reported over the weekend that Trump collected his interpreter’s notes and ordered the translator not to discuss what was said with anyone.

"This raises a new host of questions," ABC News quoted an unnamed Democratic aide as saying of the Post report. "We're looking into the legal implications of that, and we'll discuss our options [on Monday]. Our lawyers are sitting down with intel committee lawyers to hash it out."

House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff urged Republicans over the weekend to join Democrats and demand access to interpreters’ notes.

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Last year, Schiff noted, Republicans voted down a Democratic attempt to obtain the notes when the party controlled the House.

Trump and Putin met for the first official summit in Helsinki, Finland on July 16. The two presidents had a one-on-one private conversation followed by an expanded meeting. The two leaders discussed the Syrian refugee crisis, the situation in Ukraine, nuclear proliferation and Russia's alleged meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.

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