By Jan Wolfe

WASHINGTON (Reuters] – A congressional committee is looking for hundreds of pages of documents from Trump’s final months as a Republican president.

Trump has won his fight against the requests. He appealed to a U.S. Judge’s decision that the National Archives could release documents.

This is a brief explanation about what the congressional committee wants and what might happen next.

WHAT RECORDS HAS TH CONGRESSIONAL COMPETTEE REQUESTED FOR?

The U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee requested documents such as White House visitor logs. Schedules. Call records. Handwritten notes by Trump’s previous Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.

It is looking for emails from Trump advisers to discuss contesting 2020’s presidential election as well as planning Trump’s rally in the vicinity of the White House on January 6.

Also, the committee requested videos and photographs relating Trump’s January 6th public comments. Trump made a fiery speech at rally, falsely asserting that his defeat was the result widespread fraud.

Bennie Thompson (a Mississippi Democrat) told CNN Tuesday that it is now possible to view outtakes from a Trump video captured on January 6th as the riots unfolded.

In that video, Trump urged supporters to “go home in peace,” but also “we love you, you’re very special.” Trump also made numerous false statements about election theft.

Thompson said that Trump had filmed six videos of the incident because his advisers felt he wasn’t strong enough to order the rioters home.

WHAT TIMEFRAME DESCRIBE THE WHITE-HOUSE RECORDS?

Many of the records of Trump White House are from his final weeks in office. However, the committee is also looking for communications back to April 2020 in order to uncover the truth about Trump’s false claim that the November 2020 elections were rigged against them.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan asked whether records from April 2020 are necessary for the investigation of the committee during a hearing in court last week.

But the judge said in her decision that, while the Committee has “cast a wide net,” its requests “do not exceed the Committee’s legislative powers.”

What is TRUMP ARGUE?

Trump invoked executive privilege. This legal doctrine is used by presidents to protect their communications. Presidents have the right to some privacy when speaking with advisors in order for them to give candid advice. This is the basis of executive privilege.

Chutkan stated that there is a public interest in finding out the truth about Jan. 6. She added that Trump’s privilege claim must be respected and deference should be shown to President Joe Biden’s decision regarding the release of Trump records.

“The legislative and executive branches believe the balance of equities and public interest are well served by the Select Committee’s inquiry,” Chutkan wrote in her decision. “The court will never second guess the two branches that historically have negotiated their own solutions for congressional requests to presidential documents.

She said, “Presidents don’t kings and Plaintiff doesn’t President.”

WHAT IS NEXT

Trump asked for an appeals court’s temporary decision, also known as “stay”, to block the National Archives turning over documents to the Select Committee. Trump would like to appeal Chutkan’s decision.

The National Archives said that they will deliver the documents on Friday, Nov. 12 unless there’s a court or other order.