Trump sues Deutsche Bank & Capital One over Democrat subpoenas for his financial records

US President Donald Trump, three of his children, and the Trump Organization filed a federal lawsuit against Deutsche Bank and Capital One to block them from complying with federal subpoenas investigating his financial dealings.

The federal lawsuit was filed in the US District Court’s Southern District of New York. It asserted that demands for records by Democrat-controlled House committees have no legitimate or lawful purpose.

“The subpoenas were issued to harass President Donald J. Trump, to rummage through every aspect of his personal finances, his businesses, and the private information of the President and his family,” the lawsuit said.

It also complained that the Democrats are hoping “they will stumble upon something they can expose publicly and use as a political tool against the President.”

The filing said the two banks have “long provided business and personal banking services” to the Trumps, and the subpoenas, seeking a complete accounting of financial records, are an instance of “remarkable overbreadth.”

It called for a “permanent injunction prohibiting Deutsche Bank and Capital One from disclosing, revealing, delivering, or producing the requested information, or otherwise complying with the subpoenas.”

The suit which includes the Trump Organization and Trump’s three eldest children (Donald Jr, Eric and Ivanka) states that the court has the power to declare the subpoenas invalid.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff and House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters released a joint statement calling the lawsuit ‘meritless.’

On April 15, Schiff and Waters issued subpoenas to Deutsche Bank (which is one of the Trump Organization’s major lenders) and several other financial institutions as part of investigations into Trump’s finances.

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Trump sues to block Democrats’ subpoena to look into his personal finances

“The potential use of the US financial system for illicit purposes is a very serious concern. The financial services committee is exploring these matters, including as they may involve the president and his associates, as thoroughly as possible,” Waters said in a statement. Schiff said previously the subpoenas issued included a “friendly subpoena to Deutsche Bank.”

Trump recently said he intends to defy any efforts from the Democrats to dig into his affairs.

Deutsche Bank said in a statement it will comply with all subpoenas and court orders.

“We remain committed to providing appropriate information to all authorized investigations and will abide by a court order regarding such investigations,” a representative of Deutsche Bank said.

In 2017, the bank rejected requests by Democrats in the House of Representatives to provide details of the president’s finances, citing privacy laws.

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