Trump DOJ invokes presidential communications privilege to shield identities of advisers who drafted executive orders targeting law firms

In the American Bar Association's lawsuit challenging executive orders that targeted major law firms, the Justice Department filed a notice formally asserting presidential communications privilege to avoid identifying the individuals who drafted, reviewed, and approved the orders. The move came after Judge Amir Ali ordered the government to provide the names as a basic discovery step. The DOJ argued that even revealing the identities would have a chilling effect, calling the request 'Nixon distilled.' The assertion followed an Office of Legal Counsel opinion expanding the privilege to cover private presidential advisers, raising concerns about an effort to hide the role of informal advisers like Boris Epshteyn and Steve Bannon in the campaign against disfavored firms.

“Nixon distilled” — DOJ characterization of the ABA's discovery demand for names of executive order drafters, as reported by Above the Law. Quote verified against source