Administration appointment could benefit grandson of Trump inquisitor

An appointment by the Trump administration has created a political opportunity for Chuck Grassley’s grandson, at a time when the senior Iowa senator is leading an investigation into the White House and the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr.

Grassley, a Republican, chairs the powerful Senate judiciary committee. In that role he faces a key decision about whether – and when – to call the president’s son to testify publicly and under oath about allegations of potential misconduct during the 2016 election.

At the same time, the Trump administration has appeared to make efforts that – intentionally or not – have acted in Grassley’s favour.

Earlier this month, the White House appointed the Iowa secretary of agriculture, Bill Northey, as undersecretary for farm production and conservation, a senior post in Washington. That created a state vacancy that could go to Grassley’s grandson, state legislator Pat Grassley.

Chuck Grassley had publicly advocated for Northey to be given a top job in Washington. In January he said on Twitter that Northey should be named US agriculture secretary, a job that eventually went to Sonny Perdue, a former governor of Georgia.

Last week, Grassley, who has served in the Senate for more than 30 years, said his grandson was the best choice to succeed Northey.

“I know darn well you expect me to support my grandson, and I am,” he said in a conference call with Iowa reporters, according to the Des Moines Register. “I hope he’ll be appointed.”

Political pundits in Iowa say making the younger Grassley state agriculture secretary could be an important springboard to his appointment to Grassley’s seat in the US Senate, should the 84-year-old retire early.

“There is broad agreement among Iowa politics watchers in both parties that the Grassley family plan for many years has been for Pat Grassley to eventually take over his grandfather’s Senate seat,” said Laura Belin, the publisher of Iowa politics website Bleeding Heartland.

The administration announced Northey’s appointment days after Donald Trump called Grassley – seemingly out of the blue – to reaffirm his support for the production of ethanol, a key issue for Grassley and his home state. Grassley tweeted about the call, prompting questions about whether the president could be seeking to curry favour. Grassley’s spokeswoman said the Russia investigation was never raised in the “two-minute” conversation.

There is no evidence of wrongdoing by the Trump administration or Grassley.

The Republican senator has in the past won praise, including from Democrats, for leading impartial investigations and being willing to investigate both Democratic and Republican administrations. He has also been an important advocate for the protection of whistleblowers.

Jill Gerber, Grassley’s spokeswoman, said any appearance of conflict in the matter was “a baseless conspiracy theory”. Some other Washington watchers agreed, saying the potential appointment of Grassley’s grandson to the state job would represent a fairly normal political move.

But both Trump’s phone call to the Iowa senator and the appointment of Northey – who still requires Senate confirmation – have come as the Iowa senator is deciding whether and when to call Donald Trump Jr to testify at a public hearing.

The judiciary committee is investigating the circumstances around a meeting Trump Jr held with Russians at Trump Tower during the 2016 election campaign, in an apparent attempt to acquire compromising information about Trump’s opponent, Hillary Clinton.

Grassley’s support of the president has undoubtedly been welcome at the White House. More than any other senior lawmaker, Grassley has aggressively questioned the veracity of claims that were made in a controversial dossier that alleged collusion between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign.

While many lawmakers have withheld judgment, Grassley has suggested that the dossier, produced by former British spy Christopher Steele, could have been part of a disinformation campaign against Trump by the Kremlin.

Judiciary committee investigators have privately interviewed Trump Jr and Glenn Simpson, a former journalist who runs the private firm that commissioned the Steele dossier, behind closed doors. Last month, Grassley suggested he might release the transcripts of Simpson’s testimony, a move unlikely to be welcomed by the White House.

Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate judiciary committee, told CNN last week she and Grassley intended to call Donald Trump Jr for public testimony.

“I think it’s Senator Grassley’s intent, and it’s certainly my intent, to have him before the committee in the open and be able to ask some questions under oath,” she said.

The appointment of Northey’s replacement will be made by Iowa’s governor, Kim Reynolds, a former lieutenant governor who was named to the governorship after her predecessor, Terry Branstad, was appointed ambassador to China.

A spokeswoman for Reynolds said it was not yet clear when a replacement for Northey would be named because he had not yet been confirmed.

When asked if the governor had spoken to either Trump or Grassley about the upcoming appointment, the governor’s spokeswoman said: “The governor has had many conversations with many people about the appointment.”

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.