Sen. John Curtis (R-UT) demanded that Donald Trump Jr. be investigated by the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding his personal business dealings and relationships with “foreign business figures,” breaking with President Donald Trump in what Punchbowl News described Tuesday as a “rare instance of a GOP senator targeting a member of Trump’s family.”
Curtis’ demand came in the form of a letter to the Senate committee, asking that both Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden be subpoenaed and called to testify “regarding their past business dealings” and “relationships with foreign individuals.”
The demand comes after a bombshell report from last week that revealed Trump Jr.’s lavish wedding in the Bahamas was bankrolled by a Russian oligarch linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Questions have arisen about the relationships of President Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., with foreign business figures and the acceptance of significant gifts… These concerns are compounded by Donald Trump Jr.’s active promotion of family-backed cryptocurrency ventures, his continued pursuit of international real estate deals involving direct meetings with foreign heads of state, and his reported investments in defense contracting,” the letter reads.
“These reports raise legitimate questions about foreign access to members of a sitting president's family and whether such relationships can create actual or perceived expectations of favorable treatment. They also may create expectations of a returned favor that would not be in the best interests of the American people or our allies, and could even create national security vulnerabilities.”
While Curtis’ demand has what Punchbowl News described as a “next to zero chance” of advancing under a Republican majority, the move “is very likely to upset President Donald Trump,” the outlet notes, “who regards any questions about his family as out of bounds.”