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Trump’s company turning over documents to investigators

Posted at 5:27 PM, Mar 15, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-15 17:27:58-04

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s company said Thursday that it has been turning over documents for months in response to requests from the special counsel investigating Russian election interference and possible coordination with Trump associates.

An attorney for The Trump Organization said in a statement to The Associated Press that the company has been “fully cooperative” with Robert Mueller’s investigation since July 2017. The company has been in routine contact with the prosecutors, turning over documents and regularly discussing the scope of requests.

“This is old news and our assistance and cooperation with the various investigations remains the same today,” said Alan Futerfas, who represents the company.

Mueller’s interest in extracting information from Trump’s private company has put a new spotlight on comments the president made in an interview with The New York Times last year. Asked if Mueller would be crossing a “red line” by looking into his finances and those of his family unrelated to Russia, Trump said he thought that would be “a violation” of Mueller’s authority.

Trump would not say whether he would fire Mueller if he did look into his finances.

Asked Thursday about the president’s previous comments, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders referred questions to the Trump Organization. “We’re going to continue to fully cooperate out of respect for the special counsel,” Sanders said.

Mueller has had similar negotiations over records, including some that involve subpoenas, with dozens of attorneys, companies and people involved in the investigation. Attorneys and witnesses involved in various parts of the investigation have described weekly and even daily phone calls with Mueller’s prosecutors when they want specific information.

In addition to the company’s record production, the White House and the Trump campaign combined have provided more than a million pages of documents to Mueller’s investigators.

The Trump Organization is an umbrella entity that encompasses hundreds of companies owned by the president through a trust.