2016 ELECTION/CAMPAIGN/LEGAL/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “A lawyer for the Trump transition team said Robert Mueller’s investigators improperly reviewed some emails from transition officials, an allegation that comes amid charges of bias by the special counsel’s probe.
The lawyer told Congress in a letter dated Saturday that the government agency that held emails from the transition team had ‘unlawfully’ provided communications to the special counsel’s office. Those communications included ones that were protected by attorney-client and other privileges, the attorney, Kory Langhofer, wrote.
In a statement, a spokesman for the special counsel’s office, Peter Carr, said: ‘When we have obtained emails in the course of our ongoing criminal investigation, we have secured either the account owner’s consent or appropriate criminal process.’
The allegations are the latest in a series of criticisms of Mr. Mueller’s investigation into Russian efforts to meddle in the 2016 election and any links to the Trump campaign…
Mr. Langhofer said the Trump transition office was a ‘private organization,’ and its records should be considered ‘private records.’
According to the letter, the GSA instead produced to the FBI in August copies of the emails, laptops, and other materials associated with the transition, without notifying the transition group or removing privileged materials.
A representative for GSA didn’t respond Sunday to requests for comment.
Mr. Langhofer’s claims provoked legal debate throughout the weekend.”
-Aruna Viswanatha, “Mueller Probe Faces New Challenge From Trump Team,” The Wall Street Journal online Dec. 17, 2017 05:21pm