President Donald Trump officially added new talent to his impeachment defense team on Wednesday as the White House announced former South Carolina lawmaker Trey Gowdy will serve as counsel to the president.
According to The Hill , Trump attorney Jay Sekulow announced the move in Wednesday night statement while praising Gowdy’s known legal talent and experience in the inner-workings of the House of Representatives.
“I have known Trey for years and worked with him when he served in Congress. His legal skills and his advocacy will serve the President well,” Sekulow wrote.
“Trey’s command of the law is well known and his service on Capitol Hill will be a great asset as a member of our team.”
As previously reported by The Inquisitr , Gowdy, a career prosecutor, was recently reported to have been in discussions to join Trump’s impeachment defense team as the White House gears up for what could be a monumental fight against House Democrats on the heels of their September announcement of an official impeachment inquiry into the president.
The former lawmaker served four terms in Congress and retired at the beginning of 2019. He was quickly signed by Fox News as a contributor, but presumably, due to a potential conflict of interest, the cable news network officially cut ties with Gowdy on Wednesday amid Sekulow’s announcement.
While in office, Gowdy served as the chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, as well as having took the lead on the House Select Committee on Benghazi — where Gowdy’s prosecutorial style took center stage as former secretary of state Hillary Clinton was publicly grilled for 11 hours on television by Gowdy’s panel in an effort to determine what happened the day the U.S. Consulate was attacked in the Libyan capital in 2012.
Gowdy, who is known for his strict adherence to administrative compliance as far as Congressional hearings are concerned, may have a challenge in front of him as another member of Trump’s legal counsel recently sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stating that the White House will refuse to comply with Democrats’ request for information concerning the Ukraine phone call controversy.
Some of those requests were in the form of subpoenas, which were sent to Vice President Mike Pence, Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, the Pentagon, and the Office of Management and Budget.
Trump indicated on Wednesday that the White House might play ball with House Democrats, but only if they formally vote and pass an official impeachment inquiry and use what the president labeled as “fair” rules.
According to ABC News , it’s still unclear exactly what role Gowdy will play on Trump’s legal team.