John,

Earlier this week, former president Donald Trump’s lawyers argued in court that Trump’s executive privilege should allow him to block the release of documents to the congressional committee investigating the January 6 insurrection.

But President Biden already waived executive privilege because of the importance of this investigation—and according to the Supreme Court, the sitting president has the power to assert constitutional privileges, with former presidents retaining only a limited right to assert executive privilege. The appeals court should reject Trump’s arguments and affirm the lower court’s decision, and CREW weighed in with an amicus brief saying exactly that.

That’s not all we’ve been up to lately—here are a few of our recent investigations:

One Nation, a dark money group closely linked to Mitch McConnell, raised more than $172 million in 2020, according to a new tax return obtained by CREW. This was substantially more than the group had previously raised in a year, and the staggering total was boosted by several eight-figure contributions, including $33 million and $13.5 million from two anonymous donors.
New reporting shows that after the insurrection on January 6th, there may have been significant conversation among Trump’s cabinet about invoking the 25th Amendment and removing him from office, including discussions with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin. We’ve launched an investigation into these discussions, which could shed new light on Trump’s inner circle’s response to the insurrection.
The Pandora Papers revealed that South Dakota is a prime location for trusts suspected or known to shelter assets for offshore clients, with trusts in the state managing more than $360 billion in assets, raising serious questions about corruption. Trident Trust, one of the largest trust companies in the state, may have played a significant role in shaping the state’s trust policies, through several employees’ affiliations with a state task force. We’re investigating potential industry influence and the role Governor Kristi Noem may have played in promoting trusts in the state.

We also had a very successful Giving Tuesday this week—we exceeded our $25,000 matching goal, thanks to hundreds of CREW supporters who gave more than $27,000 to help support our anti-corruption work. Thank you so much to everyone who donated, shared, or sent words of support. We couldn’t do this work without you.

Thank you,

Noah Bookbinder
President, CREW

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