White House press secretary Sarah Sanders declined to specify on Tuesday whether communications director Hope Hicks was instructed by administration officials to invoke executive privilege when asked about her time in the West Wing by the House Intelligence Committee earlier in the day.
“I’m not going to comment on any individual interactions with the committee,” Sanders told reporters at the White House. “But we are cooperating with the committee.”
Members present for Hicks’ highly-anticipated appearance before the committee told reporters the former Trump campaign aide dodged questions about her work for President Trump, although it was unclear whether she formally asserted privilege.
“I’m also not going to comment on leaks from what is supposed to be a confidential setting,” Sanders said of reports Hicks had declined to address certain questions in her testimony.
Hicks is not the only Trump associate who reportedly sidestepped inquiries about their time working in the White House. When former chief strategist Steve Bannon appeared before the intelligence committee earlier this year, he declined to answer questions about his administration work and later said the White House had directed him to do so.
