Leonard Leo says he’s ‘not capitulating’ after Durbin subpoena
EXCLUSIVE — Federalist Society co-Chairman Leonard Leo said Thursday he is “not capitulating” after he announced Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) filed a subpoena against him.
“Today, I received an unlawful and politically motivated subpoena from U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin,” Leo said in a statement obtained by the Washington Examiner. Last November, the Democratic-led committee voted on whether to take up subpoenas for GOP megadonor Harlan Crow and the Federalist Society co-chairman.
The committee has been looking to gain access to documents from Crow and Leo to aid its investigation into allegations of unethical financial gifts and potential conflicts of interest posed by personal ties between Supreme Court justices and billionaire donors and activists.
David Rivkin, an attorney for Leo, wrote in a letter dated Oct. 19 that they previously put forward “clear and detailed reasons” as to why the committee’s inquiry constituted a form of “political retaliation in violation of the First Amendment and Equal Protection component of the Due Process Clause.”
Leo said he would not capitulate to Durbin and his “lawless support of Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and the left’s dark money effort to silence and cancel political opposition.”
The Washington Examiner contacted Durbin’s office for comment.
The committee’s subpoena comes less than a week after Washington, D.C., Attorney General Brian Schwalb quietly closed an investigation into Arabella Advisors, the $1 billion left-wing dark money network sharing connections to his office, according to a lawyer for Arabella’s funds.
However, Schwalb’s office still appears to be investigating groups linked to Leo, an influential conservative activist who helped advise former President Donald Trump on his judicial nominees. The attorney general’s office previously said it declines to confirm or deny the existence of investigations.
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This is a developing story and will be updated.
Gabe Kaminsky contributed to this report.
