Appeals court upholds order for Mark Meadows, other Trump officials to testify in Jan. 6 probe

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday sided with the Justice Department by upholding an order for former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and other top Trump administration officials from testifying in the federal probe of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

In a sealed decision, the justices denied an emergency motion filed Monday evening by former President Donald Trump's legal team. The department filed a response in opposition to the motion shortly before 1:30 a.m., court records show.

Trump was trying to appeal a decision from D.C. District Court Judge Beryl Howell, who rejected the former president's executive privilege claims last week and ordered the officials in his administration to testify, The Hill reported.

Testimony from Meadows may be valuable for prosecutors, who are trying to gain insight into White House meetings. 

Other possible Trump White House figures who were ordered to testify under Howell's decision include aide Stephen Miller, former National Intelligence Director John Ratcliffe and former Homeland Security official Ken Cuccinelli.

This court decision and federal investigation is separate from Trump's legal battle with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office regarding hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in 2016.

Madeleine Hubbard is an international correspondent for Just the News. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram.