Supreme Court grants Trump request to temporarily shield Mueller grand jury materials
The Supreme Court on Friday granted a Trump administration request to temporarily shield redacted grand jury materials related to former special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe from the Democratic-led House.
The order, signed by Chief Justice John Roberts, halts the disclosure of secret grand jury transcripts and exhibits that Democratic lawmakers had initially requested as part of the House impeachment inquiry into President Trump.
The move pushes back a lower court’s disclosure order on the materials, which was set to take effect Monday, while the justices consider the administration’s request for a longer delay.
Roberts gave the Democratic-led House Judiciary Committee until May 18 to file its response.
The administration has said it plans to formally appeal a lower court ruling that granted Democrats access to secret grand jury materials stemming from Mueller’s 22-month investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
Democrats say the additional information would provide a more complete picture of Mueller’s findings related to Trump’s alleged obstruction of the special counsel, as well as his 2016 campaign’s interactions with Russian government officials.
The Department of Justice, on behalf of the White House, told the justices in a stay request Thursday that breaching grand jury secrecy would have a chilling effect on future witnesses.
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