White House Counsel
White House Counsel | |
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Formation | 1943 |
First holder | Samuel Irving Rosenman |
The White House Counsel is a staff appointee of the President of the United States whose role is to advise the President on all legal issues concerning the President and his Administration. The current White House Counsel is Don McGahn.
Responsibilities[edit]
The Office of Counsel to the President was created in 1943, and is responsible for advising on all legal aspects of policy questions, legal issues arising in connection with the President's decision to sign or veto legislation, ethical questions, financial disclosures, and conflicts of interest during employment and post employment. The Counsel's Office also helps define the line between official and political activities, oversees executive appointments and judicial selection, handles Presidential pardons, reviews legislation and Presidential statements, and handles lawsuits against the President in his role as President, as well as serving as the White House contact for the Department of Justice.
Limitations[edit]
Although the White House Counsel offers legal advice to the President, the Counsel does so in the President's official capacity, and does not serve as the President's personal attorney. Therefore, controversy has emerged over the scope of the attorney–client privilege between the Counsel and the President. It is clear, however, that the privilege does not apply in strictly personal matters. It also does not apply to legislative proceedings by the U.S. Congress against the President due to allegations of misconduct while in office, such as formal censures or impeachment proceedings. In those situations the President relies on a personal attorney if he desires confidential legal advice. The office is also distinct from the judiciary, and from others who are not appointed to positions, but nominated by the President, and confirmed by the Senate. These would be foremost the Attorney General of the United States, and his or her principal deputy and other assistants, who are nominated by the President to oversee the United States Department of Justice, or the Solicitor General of the United States and his or her staff (he or she is the third-ranking official in the Justice Department), who argue cases before the U.S. Supreme Court (and in lower federal courts) for the Justice Department when it is a party to the case.
List of White House Counsels[edit]
Officeholder | Term start | Term end | President |
---|---|---|---|
Samuel Rosenman | October 2, 1943 | February 1, 1946 | Franklin Roosevelt |
Harry Truman | |||
Clark Clifford | February 1, 1946 | January 31, 1950 | |
Charles Murphy | January 31, 1950 | January 20, 1953 | |
Bernard Shanley | January 20, 1953 | February 19, 1955 | Dwight Eisenhower |
Gerald Morgan | February 19, 1955 | November 5, 1958 | |
David Kendall | November 5, 1958 | January 20, 1961 | |
Ted Sorensen | January 20, 1961 | February 29, 1964 | John F. Kennedy |
Lyndon Johnson | |||
Mike Feldman | April 1964 | January 17, 1965 | |
Lee White | January 17, 1965 | February 11, 1966 | |
Milton Semer | February 14, 1966 | December 31, 1966 | |
Harry McPherson | February 11, 1966 | October 26, 1967 | |
Larry Temple | October 26, 1967 | January 20, 1969 | |
John Ehrlichman | January 20, 1969 | November 4, 1969 | Richard Nixon |
Chuck Colson | November 6, 1969 | July 9, 1970 | |
John Dean | July 9, 1970 | April 30, 1973 | |
Leonard Garment | April 30, 1973 | August 9, 1974 | |
William Casselman | August 9, 1974 | September 1975 | Gerald Ford |
Philip Buchen | September 1975 | January 20, 1977 | |
Robert Lipshutz | January 20, 1977 | October 1, 1979 | Jimmy Carter |
Lloyd Cutler | October 1, 1979 | January 20, 1981 | |
Fred Fielding | January 20, 1981 | May 23, 1986 | Ronald Reagan |
Peter Wallison | May 23, 1986 | March 20, 1987 | |
Arthur Culvahouse | March 20, 1987 | January 20, 1989 | |
Boyden Gray | January 20, 1989 | January 20, 1993 | George H. W. Bush |
Bernard Nussbaum | January 20, 1993 | March 8, 1994 | Bill Clinton |
Lloyd Cutler | March 8, 1994 | October 1, 1994 | |
Abner Mikva | October 1, 1994 | November 1, 1995 | |
Jack Quinn | November 1, 1995 | February 1997 | |
Chuck Ruff | February 1997 | September 1999 | |
Beth Nolan | September 1999 | January 20, 2001 | |
Alberto Gonzales | January 20, 2001 | February 3, 2005 | George W. Bush |
Harriet Miers | February 3, 2005 | January 31, 2007 | |
Fred Fielding | January 31, 2007 | January 20, 2009 | |
Greg Craig | January 20, 2009 | January 3, 2010 | Barack Obama |
Bob Bauer | January 3, 2010 | June 30, 2011 | |
Kathryn Ruemmler | June 30, 2011 | June 2014 | |
Neil Eggleston | June 2014 | January 20, 2017 | |
Don McGahn | January 20, 2017 | present | Donald Trump |
External links[edit]
- Executive Office of the President
- Records of Thomas E. Stephens, White House Counsel, 1953, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library
- Diaries of Bernard M. Shanley, White House Counsel, 1953-1955, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library
- Records of Gerald Morgan, White House Counsel, 1955-1958, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library
- Records of David W. Kendall, White House Counsel, 1958-1961, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library