Trey Gowdy joins Trump’s legal team

Former Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) has officially joined President Trump’s outside legal defense team as the president gears up for an impeachment battle with the House.

Trump’s personal attorney, Jay Sekulow, confirmed in a statement Wednesday night that Gowdy would serve as counsel to the president.

“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 said. “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.”

{mosads}Sekulow had said Tuesday that Gowdy was in talks to join the president’s legal team.

Gowdy is a career prosecutor who served four terms in Congress. He retired in January at the conclusion of his final term and joined Fox News as a contributor. Fox News cut ties with Gowdy on Wednesday ahead of Sekulow’s announcement.

He previously served as the chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee and led the House Select Committee on Benghazi, where he grilled former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and other Obama administration officials over their roles and knowledge of the 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in the eastern Libyan city.

Gowdy’s insistence on administrative compliance with congressional investigations while serving in the House is at odds with the White House’s most recent approach to the impeachment inquiry.

White House counsel Pat Cipollone sent a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and three committee leaders on Tuesday stating that the administration would not cooperate with any of their requests related to the impeachment inquiry.

Pelosi announced late last month that the House would formally launch an impeachment inquiry into Trump, alleging he abused his office by urging Ukraine’s president to “look into” Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.

Democratic committee leaders have in recent days issued subpoenas demanding records from the White House, Vice President Pence, the Office of Management and Budget, the Pentagon and Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani as part of the investigation.

Trump said Wednesday that he would consider cooperating with the impeachment inquiry if the House formally voted to approve rules for the investigation and if those rules were “fair.”