Capitol assault investigation: Trump tries to stop former advisers from testifying

Donald Trump has asked four former advisers not to cooperate with the parliamentary committee investigating the Jan.6 assault on the Capitol by supporters of the former president, US media reported Thursday (Oct. 7).

Ex-chief of staff Mark Meadows, ex-security adviser Kashyap Patel, ex-social media manager Dan Scavino and ex-adviser Steve Bannon each received a letter from an attorney for the billionaire Republican advising them not to respond to summons from the committee, according to the

and the Politico site.

Read alsoHow Donald Trump watched imperturbably the assault on Capitol Hill

Donald Trump's legal team advances in its letters that its archives and communications are protected by the prerogatives of the executive to keep certain information secret, or by the professional secrecy which binds a lawyer to his client.

The House of Representatives Committee of Inquiry ordered the four men to provide it with documents and testify before it to determine whether the actions of the Trump administration may have encouraged a host of supporters of the former president to take storm Congress and halt the certification of Joe Biden's presidential victory on January 6.

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Uncertainty remains as to the legal possibility that Donald Trump can invoke this professional prerogative or professional secrecy to prevent his former advisers from testifying. The current administration has indicated that it will partially lift the confidentiality of the Trump-era records to help the investigation run smoothly. His attempt to block could in any case force the commission to take legal action to enforce his subpoenas, which would slow down the investigation.

tweeted elected Democrat and commissioner Adam Schiff.

, he warned.