WASHINGTON — Donald Trump Jr. met behind closed doors for roughly seven hours Wednesday with the House Intelligence committee, fielding extensive questions about contacts he had with Russians during the 2016 campaign.
Committee members queried President Trump’s eldest son about a June 2016 meeting he held with a Russian lawyer after he was told that she would provide dirt on Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. He was also asked about his contact with WikiLeaks in October 2016, around the time the group was releasing hacked Democratic emails, according to people familiar with the session.
Trump Jr. told the committee that he had not informed his father about his meeting with the Russian lawyer at the time it took place. He also said he had not told Trump that he exchanged private messages with the WikiLeaks Twitter account, the sources said.
Trump Jr. had met with investigators for the Senate Judiciary Committee in September, but that session took place before prosecutors working for special counsel Robert Mueller III filed criminal charges against former Trump advisers.
His Wednesday session with the House committee was longer and more expansive, and it was the first opportunity elected lawmakers have had to ask Trump Jr. questions directly, instead of leaving that to investigative staff.
Trump Jr. told the committee that he did not speak to the president directly in July 2017 as the New York Times prepared to report his meeting with the Russian lawyer for the first time.
The Washington Post has reported that the president dictated the statement Trump Jr. released that day about the meeting. The statement omitted facts about the session with the Russian lawyer, indicating it was primarily about the adoption of Russian children by American families.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
