Exclusive: Eric Trump and Kimberly Guilfoyle’s phone records subpoenaed by January 6 committee
CNN
By Jamie Gangel, Jeremy Herb and Elizabeth Stuart, CNN
The House committee investigating the January 6 attack on the US Capitol has subpoenaed and obtained records of phone numbers associated with one of former President Donald Trump’s children, Eric Trump, as well as Kimberly Guilfoyle, who is engaged to Donald Trump Jr., sources tell CNN.
It appears to be the first time the select committee has issued a subpoena that targeted a member of the Trump family, in what marks a significant escalation of the investigation into Trump’s role in the January 6 insurrection. The decision to subpoena communication records involving the Trump family underscores the aggressive tack the committee is taking as it races to complete its investigation while battling Trump in court over access to documents from his administration.
The phone records obtained by the committee are part of a new round of call detail records subpoenaed from communication companies, multiple sources tell CNN. These records provide the committee with logs that show incoming and outgoing calls, including the date, time and length of calls. The records also show a log of text messages, but not the substance or content of the messages.
Still, the information can be a critical investigative tool for the committee in piecing together a road map of who was communicating before, during and after January 6.
Both Eric Trump and Guilfoyle played prominent roles in Trump’s “Stop the Steal” efforts, including fundraising off the lie that the election was stolen. Both spoke at the January 6 rally on the Ellipse that preceded the attack on the Capitol.
The records may also help the committee flesh out the text messages and phone records it has received from others, like former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, as well as fundraisers and rally organizers.
CNN reported last month that the committee had already subpoenaed the phone records of more than 100 people as part of its investigation.
In some cases, communication companies have notified the targets of subpoenas from the select committee, which led to several lawsuits to try to prevent panel from obtaining the call detail records.
The newly obtained records include the cell phone number used by Eric Trump, according to sources familiar with the number. The cell phone number for Guilfoyle was confirmed by sources familiar with her number and her text messages. The committee previously identified this number as Guilfoyle’s number in text message exchanges with other witnesses.
There is no indication the committee has directly subpoenaed either Eric Trump or Guilfoyle for interviews or documents. Nor is there any evidence that the committee has subpoenaed communication records related to Trump’s other children, Ivanka Trump or Donald Trump Jr., or his son-in-law Jared Kushner.
The committee did release text messages that Donald Trump Jr. sent to Meadows as the January 6 attack was unfolding, which Meadows voluntarily provided to the committee before he stopped cooperating.
Reached by CNN on Tuesday afternoon, the committee declined to comment on the new Trump and Guilfoyle subpoenas.
But in an interview with CNN’s Don Lemon on Monday night, select committee member Zoe Lofgren, a California Democrat, said, “We’re piecing together information from the President’s inner circle and others who were in a position to see and hear what the plot was leading up to the riot.”
Lofgren declined to say whether the committee had received information from the Trump family, while adding, “nothing is off the table.”
According to a source familiar with Eric Trump’s thinking about the subpoena of his call records, “He’s not losing any sleep over it.”
An attorney for Guilfoyle said she had not been notified of any subpoena being issued for her records. The attorney, Joseph Tacopina, said the subpoena is “of no consequence to her because she has absolutely nothing to hide or be concerned about.”
Trump, Guilfoyle roles in ‘Stop the Steal’
The committee is interested in Eric Trump due to his involvement with the events of January 6, including fundraising efforts related to “Stop the Steal,” according to a source familiar with the investigation. Eric Trump spoke at the January 6 rally at the Ellipse, quoting his father’s tweet calling rally participants “patriots” and questioning the legitimacy of President Joe Biden’s win.
“I’ve got a question for you. Is there any person here that actually thinks that Joe Biden won this election?” Eric Trump asked at the rally. “I don’t either, guys, I don’t either.”
Guilfoyle, who was involved in raising money for the Trump campaign and the January 6 rally, also spoke at the Ellipse. “Look at all of us out here, God-loving, freedom-loving, liberty-loving patriots, that will not let them steal this election,” Guilfoyle said. “We will not allow the liberals and the Democrats to steal our dream or steal our elections.”
The committee has identified Guilfoyle’s number in text message exchanges with other witnesses, according to two sources. In November, ProPublica first reported that Guilfoyle bragged over text messages about raising millions for the January 6 rally.
Guilfoyle’s attorney denied to ProPublica that the texts were related to the January 6 rally or that Guilfoyle was involved with fundraising or approving speakers.
Trump has amassed a war chest of more than $100 million in the months after he left the White House, raising tens of millions of dollars while spreading his lies about the 2020 election being stolen.
The batch of texts the committee released last month included one exchange between Donald Trump Jr. and Meadows as the January 6 attack was unfolding. Trump Jr. wrote to Meadows, “He’s got to condemn this sh*t ASAP. The Capitol Police tweet is not enough.”
“I’m pushing it hard. I agree,” Meadows responded.
The content of those texts was revealed in December by Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the panel’s top Republican, during the House vote to hold Meadows in contempt. Cheney said that Trump Jr. texted “again and again,” including texting Meadows, “We need an Oval office address. He has to lead now. It has gone too far and gotten out of hand.”
Cheney has said that the committee has “firsthand testimony” that Ivanka Trump went to the Oval Office on “at least two occasions” to try to get her father to say something to stop the attack on the Capitol.
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