A federal law demanding that presidents hand over records to the government at the end of their term has been determined to be unconstitutional, according to a non-binding DOJ opinion.
Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel T. Elliot Gaiser wrote in the opinion, “Just as Congress could not constitutionally invade the independence of the Supreme Court and expropriate the papers of the Chief Justice or Associate Justices, Congress cannot invade the independence of the President and expropriate the papers of the Chief Executive.” It explains, “Over the first two centuries of the American experiment in self-government, Presidents owned and controlled presidential papers, and Congress obtained such papers through political negotiation and interbranch accommodation, rather than as a matter of right.”
The opinion states that the Presidential Records Act of 1978 goes beyond congressional authority and “unconstitutionally intrudes on the independence and autonomy of the President guaranteed by Article II.”
A federal investigation led by a grand jury in Washington, D.C., into President Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents wrapped up in 2023. The probe, initially focusing on Trump’s dealings, broadened to also investigate alleged cover-up efforts. Two grand juries, one in Washington, D.C., and another in South Florida, were deployed to examine claims that Trump unlawfully kept classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence.
Former special counsel Jack Smith previously pushed for an opportunity to publicly testify on his investigations into President Trump. Writing to Jordan and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Smith’s lawyers said the “many mischaracterizations” of the investigation into President Trump warrant the “opportunity to testify in open hearings.”
“Given the many mischaracterizations of Mr. Smith’s investigation into President Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents and role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election, Mr. Smith respectfully requests the opportunity to testify in open hearings before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees,” Smith’s lawyers wrote.
