How does a recent Supreme Court ruling on presidential authority impact this battle between the administration and top law firms?

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The Supreme Court’s recent ruling broadening presidential control over the executive branch likely strengthens the administration’s hand procedurally and politically, even though it does not directly decide the law-firm dispute. In *Trump v. Slaughter*, the Court said the president may remove leaders of independent agencies at will, embracing a stronger “unitary executive” view. That matters here because the fight with the law firms and the ABA centers on how far the White House and Justice Department can use executive power, control internal communications, and direct officials involved in the agreements with the firms. For the administration, the ruling supports a broader argument that executive-branch actions and communications are more tightly under presidential authority. That can make it easier for the White House to argue for control over subordinates, resist discovery into internal deliberations, and defend aggressive Justice Department involvement as part of presidential supervision of the executive branch. For the law firms and the ABA, the ruling raises the stakes. Their case argues that executive power was used coercively against firms through threatened orders and pressure campaigns. A Court that is more receptive to expansive presidential authority may make those claims harder to press at the margins, especially where the dispute turns on internal executive decision-making rather than clear constitutional violations. Still, the ruling is not a blank check. Fede…

Justice Department Subpoenas 9 Law Firms as Trump Pressure Campaign Turns Into Legal Fight

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Justice Department Subpoenas 9 Law Firms as Trump Pressure Campaign Turns Into Legal Fight

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