Trump adviser Jared Kushner conducted official White House business on the encrypted messaging service WhatsApp, his lawyer confirmed to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
In the letter, Chairman Elijah Cummings, D-Md., revealed that Kushner attorney Abbe Lowell revealed in December that he “has used — and continues to use — WhatsApp as part of his official duties in the White House,” including for “communications with people outside the United States.”
White House policy calls for officials to use official systems for any government-related communications, except in “emergency circumstances” where the official system cannot be accessed and “time sensitive work” needs to be completed.
Lowell said Kushner sent screenshots of his WhatsApp messages “to his official White House email account or to the National Security Council” to comply with the Presidential Records Act. He declined to say whether Kushner has discussed classified information on WhatsApp.
“That’s above my pay grade,” he told Cummings and then-Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C.
Cummings accused the White House of stonewalling on requests for information on private email use in the White House.
“The White House’s failure to provide documents and information is obstructing the Committee’s investigation into allegations of violations of federal records laws by White House officials,” Cummings wrote.
“In fact, as you know, the White House has not produced a single piece of paper to the Committee in the 116th Congress-in this or any other investigation,” the letter said.
When asked whether the White House or National Security Council had authorized use of WhatsApp, Lowell directed those questions to them.
Cummings also raised questions about whether White House adviser and Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump, former deputy national security adviser K.T. McFarland, and former White House strategist Steve Bannon may have violated the Presidential Records Act as well.
The chairman gave an April 4 deadline for the information after requesting it in December. “If you continue to withhold these documents from the Committee, we will be forced to consider alternative means to obtain compliance,” Cummings said, hinting at options that include the committee’s subpoena power.
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