Trump confidante Hope Hicks refused to answer 155 questions about her time in the White House

One of Donald Trump’s closest confidantes refused to answer a staggering 155 questions when she faced a grilling in Washington yesterday.

Former White House communications director Hope Hicks on Capitol Hill. Picture: AP/Andrew Harnik

Former White House communications director and Trump confidante Hope Hicks refused to answer 155 questions from Congress during her testimony yesterday.

A transcript of Ms Hicks’ eight-hour appearance before the House Judiciary Committee, released today, reveals just how often she relied on White House lawyer’s claims of “absolute immunity” to stonewall questions from Democrats.

Two personal lawyers, three White House lawyers and one from the Justice Department sat with Ms Hicks throughout the closed-door interview, blocking any questions that covered her time working at the White House.

“As a former senior adviser to the President, I’m following the instructions from the White House,” Ms Hicks told the committee.

“With all due respect, that is absolute nonsense as a matter of law,” its Democratic chairman Jerry Nadler told her lawyers at one point, reacting with frustration to their assertion that Ms Hicks “may not be compelled to speak about events that occurred during her service” to President Trump.

Democrats peppered Ms Hicks with basic and insignificant questions, such as where she sat relative to the Oval Office, in an attempt to make the lawyers’ objections seem absurd. She consented to describe the weather on her first day at the White House, but was blocked from answering about the seating arrangements.

The meeting was behind closed doors, but one photographer found a crack. Picture: AP

Ms Hicks leaving after her testimony. Picture: AP

Picture: AFP

She did speak about her time on Mr Trump’s 2016 election campaign, denying the campaign was “happy” when Wikileaks released hacked emails to damage Hillary Clinton.

“I think that ‘happy’ is not — I don’t think that’s a fair characterisation. I think ‘relief that we weren’t the only campaign with issues’ is more accurate,” Ms Hicks said.

She told the committee Mr Trump had never asked her lie about “any matters of substance or consequence”.

“But I’m also part of a press operation. We’re often asked to put a positive spin on things, present the best possible version of events. But I believe I always did so with integrity,” she clarified.

Ms Hicks did admit she had told some fibs, but all of her examples were insignificant.

“I’ve said that the President was busy when he wasn’t. I’ve said that he had a conflict when he didn’t. I’ve said that he would love to participate in an interview when I know that would not be his first choice,” she said.

On three different occasions, Mr Nadler bizarrely referred to Ms Hicks as “Ms Lewandowski”, an apparent reference to Mr Trump’s first campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, with whom she was once linked romantically. The pair’s relationship has since soured.

“Ms Hicks. My name is Ms Hicks,” she eventually said, correcting Mr Nadler after the third time.

Chairman Nadler: Yeah. Ms. Lewandowski, I think, in reading this --

Ms. Hicks: My name is Ms. Hicks.

Chairman Nadler: I'm sorry, Ms. Hicks. I'm preoccupied. https://t.co/Y1goGtTchl

— Byron York (@ByronYork) June 20, 2019

It doesn’t matter what you think of Hicks. This is sexist and appalling, if you know anything about Cory Lewandowski’s alleged behavior toward her. Here’s some context: https://t.co/OMO6JjwKy9 https://t.co/Z0zPpAsZEc

— Olivia Nuzzi (@Olivianuzzi) June 20, 2019

Yesterday’s hearing was a sign of how Washington has changed since the midterm elections last November. Having claimed a majority in the House of Representatives, the Democrats are using their new-found powers to investigate Mr Trump.

The Judiciary Committee is examining potential obstruction of justice, and Ms Hicks was the first current or former Trump administration official to testify before it.

As you might recall, obstruction of justice was a key focus of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report. The report ultimately did not reach a conclusion on whether Mr Trump had obstructed justice, though Mr Mueller publicly stressed it did not exonerate him.

The Mueller team interviewed Ms Hicks three times during its probe, and her name appears 184 times in the report.

Among other things, she told Mr Mueller that Mr Trump’s urge to constrain the Russia investigation was caused by his insecurities, particularly the idea that Russia’s interference in the 2016 election might make his victory over Hillary Clinton seem illegitimate.

The President himself was keeping one eye on Ms Hicks’ visit to Capitol Hill, and expressed sympathy for her.

“So sad that the Democrats are putting wonderful Hope Hicks through hell, for three years, after total exoneration by Robert Mueller and the Mueller report. They were unhappy with the result so they want a do-over. Very unfair and costly to her,” Mr Trump said.

The press pack surrounding Hope Hicks. Picture: AP

Former White House communications director Hope Hicks leaving Congress. Picture: AP

You might wonder why there is so much focus on Ms Hicks, of all people. It is because few know or understand Donald Trump better than her.

The 30-year-old became known as something of a Trump “whisperer” during her time in the White House. She was appointed the youngest communications director in history, and as the rest of Mr Trump’s staff often crumbled around her, with chiefs of staff and press secretaries quickly flaming out, she was the one constant, always by the President’s side.

“My father makes people earn his trust. She’s earned his trust,” Ivanka Trump once said.

It was Ivanka who discovered Ms Hicks, poaching her from a PR company that was handling her fashion line back in 2014. By January of 2015, a short time after Ms Hicks joined the Trump Organisation, Mr Trump himself recruited her to work on his presidential campaign.

“Her most important role is her bond with the candidate. She totally understands him,” campaign chairman Paul Manafort later told the New York Times.

For a long time, Ms Hicks was among Mr Trump’s closest confidantes, second only to his children.

Good times. Picture: AFP

She did eventually leave the White House, and now serves as an executive vice president and chief communications officer at 21st Century Fox.

“She is as smart and thoughtful as they come, a truly great person,” the President said when Ms Hicks decided to leave.

“I will miss having her by my side but when she approached me about pursuing other opportunities, I totally understood.”

Yesterday Democrats reacted to her performance with dismay and frustration.

“It’s a farce,” Pramila Jayapal, a representative from Washington, said after the hearing.

“We’re watching obstruction of justice in action,” said Californian congressman Ted Lieu.

Mr Nadler told reporters Ms Hicks had answered “some” questions and given them “a lot of good information”, but he was still dissatisfied.

“The White House asserted so-called absolute immunity, which is ridiculous and which we’ll destroy in court,” Mr Nadler promised.

Whatever she knows about the inner workings of Mr Trump’s administration, she is not willing to share.