In today’s episode of Trump’s Russia Problem, we learn that the Trump gang tried to intimidate former acting attorney general Sally Yates out of testifying to Congress by invoking “presidential communication privilege.”

The Trump administration sought to block former acting attorney general Sally Yates from testifying to Congress in the House investigation of links between Russian officials and Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, The Washington Post has learned, a position that is likely to further anger Democrats who have accused Republicans of trying to damage the inquiry.

According to letters The Post reviewed, the Justice Department notified Yates earlier this month that the administration considers a great deal of her possible testimony to be barred from discussion in a congressional hearing because the topics are covered by the presidential communication privilege.

[…]

Yates and another witness at the planned hearing, former CIA director John Brennan, had made clear to government officials by Thursday that their testimony to the committee probably would contradict some statements that White House officials had made, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Yates was apparently planning to testify this week anyway, but then former Trump transition team member Rep. Devin Nunes abruptly canceled the hearing. That doesn’t look suspicious at all, right?

JUST IN: A 3/24 letter from DOJ to Sally Yates states she must get authorization from WH to testify about convos w/ WH, CBS News can confirm pic.twitter.com/qOmYqqlOuj

— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 28, 2017