The Justice Department is suing former White House adviser Peter Navarro over emails from a private account he used while working for former President Trump and for allegedly “improperly withholding” those communications, according to court documents.
Why it matters: The lawsuit is an unusual move by the Justice Department’s Federal Programs Division — which normally handles civil cases — targeting the previous administration’s allegedly negligent maintenance of federal records, according to CNN.
What they say: The lawsuit alleges that Navarro “refused to return any presidential records he retained because of the absence of immunity for the act of returning such documents.”
- “Mr. Navarro wrongfully withheld presidential records that are the property of the United States and that constitute part of the permanent historical record of the previous administration,” the lawsuit continues.
The other side: Navarro’s lawyers told The Hill that he has “never refused to provide records to the government.”
- “As detailed in our recent letter to the records, Mr. Navarro has instructed his attorneys to preserve all such records, and he expects the government to follow standard processes in good faith to allow him to produce records.” Instead, the government chose to file a case against them today,” his lawyers added.
Of note: Navarro was previously charged with contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with subpoenas from the House Select Committee investigating the deadly January 6, 2021 riot at the US Capitol.
- Navarro refused to testify or produce documents pursuant to the subpoena.
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