Kathrine Frich
Legal experts noted the non-binding opinion could alter upcoming political battles.
Behind closed doors, high-stakes conversations happen every day in politics.
Knowing who gets to listen in on those private chats remains a constant power struggle in Washington.
Now, legal minds are building a new shield around the Oval Office.
A powerful legal shield
The Justice Department has issued fresh advice giving the White House broad powers to hide private conversations.
According to HuffPost, a 21-page memo from the Office of Legal Counsel states that executive privilege covers chats with outside advisers and ordinary citizens.
Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser authored the opinion, which Punchbowl News first flagged on Tuesday.
The memo argues that “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,”
A Justice Department official defended the ruling to HuffPost, pointing to past precedent. “While the issue has not been litigated frequently, the Opinion reaffirms the longstanding position of the office going back at least as far as Paul Clement in 2007 and arguably as far back as 1972,” the official said.
Shielding outside allies
Legal experts noted the non-binding opinion could alter upcoming political battles. Former Justice Department attorney Jonathan Shaub told Axios that the move “could be a pretty significant weapon” if accepted by courts, adding it could be used “to deflect a lot of that congressional investigation of private parties,”
This legal maneuver comes as politicians brace for midterm battles this autumn. Democrats plan to launch sweeping probes into private business deals if they take control of Congress in November.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer slammed the memo as a defensive tactic. “Donald Trump is scared. He knows accountability is coming,” Schumer declared.
“These are the actions of someone with something to hide. And it shows he is petrified of the questions a Democratic Congress will demand answers to.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson previously warned conservative supporters about what lies ahead if Republicans lose power. “They will turn every committee of Congress into an investigative body, and they’ll go after the president’s family, the Cabinet, his donors and friends,” Johnson said earlier this summer.
Sources: HuffPost, Punchbowl News, Axios
