1. SOUNDBITE (English) Donald Trump, US President:
"(Reporter question: Mr. President, as you saw, the Senate Intelligence Committee has subpoenaed Don Jr. That's the Republican-led Senate Intelligence Committee. What do you make of that?)
Well I was very surprised. I saw Richard Burr saying there was no collusion two or three weeks ago, he went outside and somebody asked him. 'No, there was no collusion, we found no collusion.' But I was very surprised to see my son, my son is a very good person, works very hard. The last thing he needs is Washington, DC. He could rather not ever be involved. I remember he said to me a long time ago when I was thinking about running, 'Dad, if I can help, let me know. It's not my expertise, it's not something I really like, but whatever I can do, you're my father, whatever I can do.' He's now testified for 20 hours or something, a massive amount of time. The Muelller report came out, that's the bible, the Mueller report came out and they said he did nothing wrong."
2. Cutaway of press
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Donald Trump, US President:
"My son is a good person. My son testified for hours and hours. My son was totally exonerated by Mueller who frankly does not like Donald Trump. Me. This Donald Trump. And frankly for my son, after being exonerated, to now get a subpoena to go again and speak again after close to 20 hours of telling everybody that would listen about a nothing meeting. Yeah I'm pretty surprised.
(Reporter question: Will you fight the subpoena?)
Well we'll see what happens. I'm just very surprised. I really am."
President Donald Trump says he's "very surprised" that the Republican-led Senate Intelligence Committee has subpoenaed his eldest son.
Trump spoke Thursday after the Associated Press and other news outlets reported the panel is calling on Donald Trump Jr. to answer questions about his 2017 testimony to the panel as part of its probe into Russian election interference.
Trump called his son a "very good person," adding that the "last thing he needs is Washington DC." Trump also said he had already testified for a "massive amount of time."
It's the first known subpoena of a member of Trump's immediate family and a new sign that the Senate panel is continuing with its own two-year long investigation, even after the release of special counsel Robert Mueller's report and Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell's call from the Senate floor on Tuesday to move on from the probe.
The president also said he would leave the issue of whether Special Counsel Robert Mueller should testify up to Attorney General William Barr.
Trump last week said that it was Barr's call, but later declared on Twitter that Mueller should not testify.
