A federal grand jury issued the subpoenas this week to Miller, who was Trump’s top presidential speechwriter, as well as Bryan Jack, the administration’s final White House political director, among others, the New York Times reported on Friday.
The subpoenas seek information about the inner workings of the Save America PAC, the fundraising behemoth Trump created days after the 2020 election, which has amassed a $100 million war chest through donation appeals centered on his unproven claim that the election was stolen.
It indicates that the DOJ probe is widening in scope, as federal prosecutors had previously been focused on a scheme by Trump allies to elevate alternate electors in key battleground states won by Joe Biden as a way to subvert the vote.
A federal grand jury issued the subpoenas this week to Stephen Miller (left), who was Trump’s top presidential speechwriter, as well as Bryan Jack, Trump’s White House political director
The subpoenas seek information about the inner workings of the Save America PAC, the fundraising behemoth Trump created days after the 2020 election
Junior and mid-level aides who worked in the Trump White House and on his presidential campaign also received subpoenas on Wednesday, according to the Times.
Receiving a subpoena does not mean that a person is the target of a criminal investigation, but rather that investigators believe that they may have information that is relevant to the case.
Miller and Jack declined to comment to the outlet, and Trump himself has not yet publicly addressed reports about the probe into the Save America PAC.
The new subpoenas were made by a grand jury separate from the one probing a failed bid by Trump loyalists to submit slates of fake electors to overturn the 2020 election, though the two grand juries appear to be focusing on overlapping issues, the Times reported.
The investigation into Save America PAC was first reported by ABC News.
The new subpoenas seek information about communications with a range of people, some of them lawyers who were subpoenaed as part of the fake elector probe.
Save America was launched two days after networks called the 2020 election for President Joe Biden and raised funds using Trump’s election fraud lies
But despite the overlap, it’s unclear what prosecutors believe connects the alleged fake elector plot with Trump’s Save America PAC.
Founded days after the 2020 election, the Save America PAC has brought in more than $135 million, including more than $30 million transferred from Trump’s campaign committee.
The group has spent about $36 million, including about $3.1 million to various law firms for legal consulting, leaving it with a war chest of $99 million at the last reporting period in July.
The PAC also paid about $8.7 million to Event Strategies Inc, the company that helped organize the Trump’s January 6, 2021 rally in DC, which immediately preceded the US Capitol riot.
The Justice Department investigation is running parallel to a probe by a US House committee which has held several public hearings, including in prime time, about efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn his 2020 election loss.
That House committee doesn’t have the power to file criminal charges, but legal experts have said the testimony at the hearings gives prosecutors territory to explore.
Former President Donald Trump’s Save America PAC is being investigated as part of a federal grand jury’s wider probe into the January 6 Capitol attack
The new subpoenas are another sign of escalating law enforcement scrutiny of Trump.
Last month, the FBI searched his Florida home as part of its investigation into whether he took classified records from the White House to Mar-a-Lago.
He is also facing a civil investigation in New York over allegations that his company, the Trump Organization, misled banks and tax authorities about the value of his assets.
Trump has previously slammed the FBI raid as ‘prosecutorial misconduct’ and political weaponization of the criminal justice system. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
In the 246 years since the United States was founded, no former president has ever been charged with a crime. However, former presidents do not have blanket immunity from prosecution.