A Justice Department memo published this week says President Donald Trump’s private advisers may claim executive privilege when asked to hand over their communications, a move that would greatly expand the historical protections upheld by the Supreme Court in multiple rulings.
Executive privilege is not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution, but the high court has held that the U.S. government’s separation of powers permits the president to keep certain correspondence confidential — making it more difficult for Congress and the courts to subpoena certain information.
“Executive privilege can apply to presidential communications with private advisers so long as the communications relate to official presidential decisionmaking, involve or reflect communications with the President or his direct advisers, and are confidential,” Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser wrote in a memo opinion published Monday.