Democrats Looking to Interview Ivanka Trump in Russia Probe

Democrats on the Senate Intelligence Committee told BuzzFeed News on Tuesday they want to interview White House adviser Ivanka Trump as part of the investigation into Russian election interference.

BuzzFeed News reported last week that daughter of President Donald Trump had contact with a Russian athlete who offered to introduce her father to Russian President Vladimir Putin and facilitate the building of a Trump tower in Moscow.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., told BuzzFeed he wants the committee to ask Ivanka "two separate national security questions": 

1. One about "her role" in connecting Russian weightlifter Dmitry Klokov with President Trump's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, who was working on the real estate project.
2. And the second about her winning seven new trademarks in China at the same time the president vowed to help prevent Chinese telecommunications company ZTE stay afloat, even though ZTE was fined by the U.S. government for breaking sanctions and was cited as a threat to national security.

"I would like to have the staff look at both of those issues," Wyden said.

According to a BuzzFeed source, Democrats "have wanted to bring her in for a while," but she is not considered a focal point of the investigation.

"It's just a debate about priorities that we haven't sorted out yet," the source said.

Republicans on the committee were less enthusiastic about hearing her testimony. A spokesperson for committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., declined to comment to BuzzFeed, as did vice chair Sen. Mark Warner, R-Va., while Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said he would not rule out Ivanka speaking before the committee, though he would need to consult with staff before deciding if it is necessary.

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