Individuals on the House Judiciary Committee have considered requesting documents from Ivanka Trump as part of a wide-ranging investigation into President Donald Trump, his inner circle, and members of the administration, according to two sources with knowledge of those conversations. Multiple other people are also under consideration for queries, according to those sources, who stressed that the president’s daughter is not a primary focus.
On Monday, the committee sent out its first batch of letters requesting documents from more than 80 people and entities associated with the president. His first daughter, who is also a senior White House adviser, was not a recipient, though his sons, Eric and Donald Trump Jr., were. His son-in-law Jared Kushner made the list as well.
Ivanka Trump’s absence from the initial list raised eyebrows. But it may not be permanent.
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A spokesperson for the committee said Monday that it would be sending out the next batch of document requests soon. The spokesperson did not indicate the exact date for when the request would be sent or what type of documents would be requested. And on Wednesday, Democratic members expressed reservations about targeting the president's children—particularly those outside the administration—as part of oversight probes.
“Getting to family members I think is dangerous,” said Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), a senior member of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, told POLITICO. “Only because it gets real personal, real fast. And it risks backfiring.”
Ivanka Trump is linked to several ongoing investigations and dealing with the fallout of a congressional probe into husband Jared Kushner’s security clearance.
Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office is reportedly scrutinizing Ivanka Trump’s role in the Trump Tower Moscow deal, including who she communicated with about the plans to build the luxury real estate project in Russia’s capital city.
And in New York, former Attorney General Barbara Underwood last year sued the Donald J. Trump Foundation—where Ivanka Trump was a board member—alleging it had functioned “as little more than a checkbook to serve Mr. Trump’s business and political interests.” The lawsuit also alleged that the charity unlawfully coordinated with Trump’s 2016 campaign.
In December, the foundation agreed to dissolve and give away its remaining assets. But its board of directors, which also includes Eric and Donald Trump Jr., is still under investigation. The suit could bar the Trump children from participating on the boards of other New York charities and force them to pay millions in restitution.
Congressional Democrats, including on the House Oversight Committee, have also vowed to investigate Ivanka Trump’s use of a private email server at the start of her time in the White House.
“All of my emails are stored and preserved,” Ms. Trump told ABC News in November. “There were no deletions. There is no attempt to hide.” She told ABC it was was not unusual for people to use private email accounts for personal reasons.
Ivanka Trump’s lawyer did not respond to requests for comment.
The Daily Beast called more than 20 people on the judiciary committee’s initial list of targets for document production. Many of them said they would comply with the request even though the documents requested were largely in the hands of law enforcement agencies already.
