President Joe Biden has once more rejected the plea for the executive privilege by Donald Trump to keep away a tranche of documents from a special congressional committee. The committee is investigating the US Capitol January 6 insurrection. The Trump executive privilege has already featured in another lawsuit to block the release of any documents that the House select committee has sought.
The committee has sought the documents to investigate the attack on the Capitol on January 6. The panel has already held Steve Bannon, a former close associate of Trump, in criminal contempt for defying a subpoena to appear before the committee. The former president could also face a subpoena as part of the ongoing investigation.
President Biden has ruled that giving Trump executive privilege would go against the interests of the nation. He said that it was, therefore, unjustified to withhold documents submitted to the President on the 16th and 23rd of September 2021.
Subpoenaed Steve Bannon Tried To Hide Behind Trump Executive Privilege
Thus the current President does not uphold the assertion of Trump’s Executive Privilege. Steve Bannon’s lawyer has said that his client was not acting in defiance of the subpoena. He pointed to instructions sent by Donald Trump’s attorney.
He asserted that the counsel for Trump had held that as they were invoking executive privileges, they were not to release documents or give any testimony that might disclose information the counsel for Trump was legally trying to protect.
The January 6 panel has indicated that they will fight the Trump executive privilege claims. It remains unclear which way this suit will play out. while former presidents have some authority to proclaim executive privilege, a lot of questions need to be addressed to decide the extent of the Trump executive privilege.
The January 6 insurrection was an appalling blot that undermined that republic. Biden had been right in rejecting Trump executive privilege claims. It would be difficult for any sitting President – Democratic or Republican – to believe that invocation of it would benefit the nation.
