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DOJ Memo Expands Executive Privilege to Trump Advisers

8/26/2026

Summary

Story summary

U.S. Department of Justice Legal Counsel issued a memo expanding executive privilege to advisers on August 10, 2026.
Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser signed the 21-page opinion, requiring relevance, presidential involvement, and confidentiality.
DOJ moved to quash a Bar Association subpoena to Trump adviser Boris Epshteyn, invoking the expanded privilege.
Harvard professor Noah Feldman called the expansion politically unprecedented, legally wrong, and morally dubious.

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Story summary

U.S. Department of Justice Legal Counsel issued a memo expanding executive privilege to advisers on August 10, 2026.
Assistant Attorney General T. Elliot Gaiser signed the 21-page opinion, requiring relevance, presidential involvement, and confidentiality.
DOJ moved to quash a Bar Association subpoena to Trump adviser Boris Epshteyn, invoking the expanded privilege.
Harvard professor Noah Feldman called the expansion politically unprecedented, legally wrong, and morally dubious.