The Latest: Dem suggests Whitaker, Trump talked about Cohen
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker returning to Capitol Hill (all times local):
7 p.m.
The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee is suggesting that former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker may have had conversations with President Donald Trump about Michael Cohen’s legal troubles, saying that Whitaker “did not deny” the conversations during a private meeting on Capitol Hill.
Democratic Rep. Jerrold Nadler did not get into specifics of what Whitaker said when he met with Nadler and the top Republican on the panel, Georgia Rep. Doug Collins. Collins said he heard Whitaker’s comments differently and maintained that Whitaker said he “had not talked with the president about Mr. Cohen at all.” Two Republican staff members in the room backed up Collins’ version. The aides spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential meeting.
The dispute could have high stakes, as Democrats have voiced concerns that Whitaker was a Trump loyalist whose appointment they suspect was aimed at suppressing investigations of the president.
— By Mary Clare Jalonick
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1:20 p.m.
Former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker is returning to Capitol Hill to clarify his testimony about several matters, including his communications with President Donald Trump.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler said after Whitaker’s public testimony in February that his answers were “unsatisfactory, incomplete or contradicted by other evidence.” Nadler said Whitaker didn’t offer clear responses about his communications with the White House and was inconsistent about which questions he refused to answer.
Nadler asked Whitaker to return to the committee to clarify his answers. Whitaker, who has since left the Justice Department, will meet Wednesday afternoon with Nadler and the committee’s top Republican, Georgia Rep. Doug Collins.
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