The Big Picture and the Closeup

I’m not suggesting there is no social utility to the attorney-client privilege. The client certainly has a need to consult counsel in confidence. But what about when there is no client anymore? There is no one then to embarrass, no one to prosecute, potentially no one left whose ox could be gored.

We can all agree that historical understandings of the dividing line between war and law enforcement do not fit well the kind of conflicts our nation faces today. But the solution to that quandary should not be to cede all discretion to an Executive that works in the shadows. There are other unaddressed needs at work, among them the imperative to cut the public in on the discussion and the decision-making.