President Donald Trump is now using executive privilege tactics against Joe Biden’s former White House staff, despite strongly opposing similar measures when they were used against him during the January 6 investigation.
According to Politico, the House Oversight Committee, led by Representative James Comer, is investigating Biden’s health and mental fitness during his presidency. Trump has agreed to waive executive privilege, which would normally keep White House communications private, to force Biden’s former aides to testify.
In a complete reversal of his previous stance, Trump is now embracing the same approach he once warned would “do grave damage” to the presidency and the republic, demonstrating Trump’s consistent pattern of hypocrisy when it comes to accountability During the January 6 investigation, Trump’s lawyers argued that allowing Congress to access private presidential communications would turn executive privilege into “a political weapon to be used against political enemies.”
How executive privilege became a political tool
Executive privilege has historically been used to protect private conversations between presidents and their advisers. This protection typically continues even after a president leaves office, but the current president has the power to override it.
When Biden was president, he waived executive privilege to allow Trump’s former aides to testify about the January 6 attack. Biden’s team saw this as necessary due to the serious nature of the investigation into the Capitol riot and attempts to overturn the 2020 election results.
I know Honker.
— California Kid (@BrianRo88242805) July 10, 2025
Grok:Waiver of Executive Privilege: The Trump White House waived executive privilege for O’Connor on July 8, 2025, specifically for topics related to Biden’s fitness for office and O’Connor’s financial ties to the Biden family. This waiver removed any potential…
Now, Trump’s White House is using the same tactic to compel testimony from Biden’s former staff members, including his physician, Kevin O’Connor, and former staff secretary Neera Tanden. The investigation focuses on claims about Biden’s cognitive capabilities and whether his team tried to hide any decline in his mental fitness.
Constitutional experts worry this back-and-forth use of privilege waivers could create a dangerous pattern, especially given concerns that Trump doesn’t understand how government works. Mark Rozell from George Mason University suggests that presidential advisers might become less honest in their advice if they fear their private conversations could be exposed by future political opponents.
The investigation has already seen some resistance. O’Connor has refused to answer questions, citing doctor-patient confidentiality and his Fifth Amendment rights. Meanwhile, Biden’s team has taken a hands-off approach, allowing each witness to decide how to handle the committee’s requests on their own.
