Former President Donald Trump is suing the House select committee probing the events surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol breach.
He's also suing the National Archives, looking to block release of White House records from his administration that relate to the Capitol attack.
According to Politico, the ex-president's lawyers filed suit on Monday in district court in Washington, denouncing the Jan. 6 probe as a "vexatious, illegal fishing expedition." Trump's suit names as co-defendants the chairman of the Jan. 6 panel, Democrat Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi; the committee itself; the archives; and national archivist David Ferriero, said Politico's report.
The former president sought to claim executive privilege in connection with documents sought by the investigative panel. But the Biden administration has rejected those claims.
On Jan. 6, hundreds of protesters stormed the Capitol, looking to prevent lawmakers from certifying Electoral College results that showed Joe Biden as the winner of the hotly contested presidential election.
Trump has long maintained that the election was marred by widespread and systemic fraud. Trump critics have contended that his "stop the steal" rhetoric incited a crowd at a rally near the Capitol earlier on Jan. 6 to breach the landmark. One participant in the ensuing attack died after being shot while several others were injured, and a Capitol Police officer who had been on duty during the attack died the following day from a stroke.
Defenders of Trump have insisted that the event was spurred, at least in part, by antifa agitators posing as Trump backers and whipping up the crowd.
The select committee has also subpoenaed several people who worked with Trump and his administration, pledging to pursue contempt charges against anyone who defies the call to offer evidence and testimony.
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