Robert Reich: “Such a blanket edict fits a dictator of a banana republic, not the president of a constitutional republic founded on separation of powers.”

“If Congress cannot question the people who are making policy, or obtain critical documents, Congress cannot function as a coequal branch of government.”

“If Congress cannot get information about the executive branch, there is no longer any separation of powers, as sanctified in the US constitution.”

“There is only one power – the power of the president to rule as he wishes. Which is what Donald Trump has sought all along.”

New York Times: “It was emailed to 388 administration officials every night as an attachment: a copy of President Trump’s private daily schedule, outlining his upcoming meetings and their locations, helping the White House staff plan around his day.”

“But since that schedule — which revealed that Mr. Trump’s day was often made up of large blocks of unstructured and unscheduled ‘executive time’ — began regularly turning up in the hands of journalists, the White House has instituted a new system to crack down on unsanctioned ‘leaks.’”

“There are no more email attachments, according to two officials. Instead, the president’s daily private schedule is now shared on SharePoint, a Microsoft product that allows an administrator to monitor who has viewed the document. Based on how often people view the schedule, and when its contents become public, the White House has narrowed down its search for the schedule ‘leaker’ to three potential culprits.”

From a New York Times editorial:

While executive privilege is a common presidential tool, historians note that Mr. Trump’s usage is decidedly uncommon, if not unprecedented. Unlike his predecessors, who invoked privilege in specific cases, Mr. Trump has vowed that he will not cooperate with any congressional inquiry. He is effectively declaring lawmakers powerless over him. This, warn the experts, puts the nation in uncharted territory and threatens to erode its democratic foundations.

Presidents clash with Congress, at times fiercely. The founders wanted it that way. But in declaring war on congressional oversight, Mr. Trump is not looking to maintain a balance of powers. He is looking to blow up the scales.