President Donald Trump described the investigation into his administration's security clearance process as a "witch hunt" and a "disgrace" as the White House refused to hand over documents relating to his son-in-law Jared Kushner.
The White House and the House Oversight and Reform Committee clashed over the review as the Trump administration denied requests for documents and interviews from the committee.
Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings said the White House was attempting to challenge the panel's authority and was questioning whether it had a legitimate purpose for the requests.
Cummings also released a letter he received from White House counsel Pat Cipollone in which he called Cummings's request "unprecedented and extraordinarily intrusive.
"As I have explained in multiple previous letters, it is clearly established as a matter of law that the decision to grant or deny a security clearance is a discretionary function that belongs exclusively to the Executive Branch," Cipollone wrote.
The review was launched by the committee following concerns that as many as 130 people working in the Executive Office of the President did not have permanent security clearances, according to White House documents obtained by NBC News. Among those who reportedly did not have full clearance was the president's daughter, Ivanka Trump, and her husband, Jared Kushner.
The the committee's request for documents arrived following a New York Times report that said that Trump had ordered officials to grant Kushner a high-level security clearance despite objections from senior administration and intelligence officials.
"The White House appears to be arguing that Congress has no authority to examine decisions by the Executive Branch that impact our national security—even when the President's former National Security Advisor has pleaded guilty to lying about his contacts with foreign government officials," Cummings said in a statement.
"There is a key difference between a president who exercises his authority under the Constitution and a president who overrules career experts and his top advisors to benefit his family members and then conceals his actions from the American people. The White House's argument defies the Constitutional separation of powers, decades of precedent before this Committee, and just plain common-sense."
According to The Hill, Cummings is reportedly looking into subpoenaing the administration to force the release of the requested documents.
"The White House security clearance system is broken, and it needs both congressional oversight and legislative reform," Cummings said in his statement. "I will be consulting with Members of the Committee to determine our next steps."
The House Judiciary Committee has also launched an investigation, with at least 81 people and organizations linked to the president or his campaign team receiving letters in relation to the probe.
"The witch hunt continues," Trump told reporters after signing an executive order on National Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End Veteran Suicide, at the White House.
"The fact is that that we got 81 letters, there was no collusion, it was a hoax, there was no anything. They [Democrats] want to do that instead of getting legislation passed.
"It's a disgrace, it's a disgrace to our country. I'm not surprised that it's happening," Trump said, reported The Associated Press. "Basically, they've started the campaign. So, the campaign begins."
In a tweet the same night, Trump simply wrote: "PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT!"
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About the writer
Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, domestic policy ... Read more
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