White House rejects request for Trump, Putin communications

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is rejecting a Democratic request for information on private conversations between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, including an interview with an interpreter who sat in on their one-on-one meeting in Helsinki last summer.

In a letter earlier this month, three House committees asked for the substance of Trump and Putin’s conversations in person and by phone. They also asked for any documents related to the conversations and whether Trump tried to conceal any evidence of them.

White House counsel Pat Cipollone rejected the requests in a letter Thursday to the Democratic chairmen of the three committees. He said the president “must be free to engage in discussions with foreign leaders without fear that those communications will be disclosed.”