Attorneys for the political consulting firm behind the infamous Trump-Russia dossier accused a Republican lawmaker of abusing his power to punish the president's political enemies.
Legal counsel for Fusion GPS argued late Monday that a subpoena issued by the House Intelligence Committee seeking two years of the opposition research firm's bank records was overly broad and would destroy the company, reported Business Insider.
They also issued a statement Tuesday morning, ahead of a news conference by Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA), accusing the committee chair of acting unethically.
"This overly broad subpoena for Fusion's bank records serves no investigative purpose and is designed to punish President Trump's political foes while chilling future investigative research into his actions," attorney William W. Taylor III said. "It is an abuse of authority by a chairman already under an ethics investigation who supposedly recused himself from work related to Russia's involvement in the last election."
Attorneys argued that complying with the subpoena would pose and "existential threat" to Fusion because it would publicly reveal the firms relationship with about 25 clients and approximately 30 contractors.
"In short, compliance with this subpoena will not only harm Plaintiff’s business, it has a high likelihood of ruining it," the firm's lawyers said.
They argued that committee staffers had "systematically disclosed confidential and prejudicial information" about Fusion.
Nunes stepped aside from the congressional probe in April after briefing Trump and reporters on classified intelligence without telling his colleagues on the panel.
He has conducted his own investigation of the "unmaskings" of Trump associates caught by the Obama administration, and Tuesday announced a new congressional probe of Hillary Clinton's alleged ties to Russia.
