As President Trump asserts sweeping and controversial powers, his administration has curtailed the activities of the powerful Office of Legal Counsel.
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The Trump administration has undermined the Office of Legal Counsel's authority, accelerating Mr. Trump's actions but creating greater challenges for Justice Department lawyers.
The Office of the Attorney General of the Department of Justice has traditionally been a powerful pillar of the American government.
He issued interpretations of the law that are binding on all executive branches, decided which proposed policies were legally permissible and which were not, and approved draft decrees before they were submitted to presidents for signature.
But in President Trump’s second term, the job has largely fallen by the wayside. As Mr. Trump issues policy after policy, expanding the legal framework and asserting an expansive view of his power, the White House has undermined its role as gatekeeper — delaying its delivery of top leadership and weakening its ability to oversee the quality of executive orders.
His weakened voice shifts the balance of legal power in the executive branch toward the White House, accelerating Mr. Trump’s ability to act but creating greater difficulties for Justice Department lawyers who must defend the government in court.
“The Trump administration has taken away the traditional oversight that the Justice Department had,” said Jack Goldsmith, a Harvard law professor who led the department during the George W. Bush administration. “Eliminating the OLC is part of a larger strategy to ensure that the president can do whatever he wants without any internal executive legal constraints on his will.”
Two and a half months into his administration, Mr. Trump has not produced a Senate-confirmed leader or an acting assistant attorney general. This week, after being asked to comment for this article, the department announced that he would nominate Solicitor General T. Elliott Gaiser, 35, of Ohio.
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