Could executive privilege block Comey testimony?

Associated Press

WASHINGTON

Could President Donald Trump keep former FBI Director James Comey from testifying to lawmakers about their private conversations?

The White House appears to be considering raising the issue of executive privilege, but Trump may have a weak case for claiming that his conversations with Comey should be considered private – especially since the president himself has commented publicly about the circumstances surrounding Comey’s May 9 firing.

Comey is set to testify Thursday before the Senate intelligence committee. Some questions and answers about executive privilege:

WHAT IS EXECUTIVE PRIVILEGE?

The term “executive privilege” is not in the U.S. Constitution. But it has been invoked by presidents since George Washington to withhold private White House deliberations and records from Congress.

The idea is that presidents should expect to get candid advice from top aides without worrying about revealing it to Congress.

The Supreme Court formally recognized the doctrine during the Watergate crisis as part of the balance between the executive branch and Congress. While the justices said conversations between presidents and top aides were presumed confidential, they said the privilege is not absolute.

TRUMP’S CASE

Comey is likely to testify about the FBI’s investigation into possible connections between Russia and the Trump campaign and whether Trump tried to interfere with the probe. Trump could argue that discussions with Comey pertained to national security and had the expectation of privacy.

But Trump likely undermined those arguments because he has already discussed the conversations in tweets and interviews, according to Mitch Sollenberger, a political science professor at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.

COULD COMEY DEFY HIM?

Comey has indicated that he wants to testify. He is now a private citizen, so he doesn’t have to fear retaliation for defying Trump.

He has an incentive to push back against the White House portrayal of him as unfit for office. Comey’s associates have said Comey told them Trump had asked for a pledge of loyalty to the president and later asked Comey to consider ending the investigation of Flynn. The White House has denied those characterizations.