Who is entitled to executive privilege?

The President of the United States and other high-members of the executive branch are the only individuals in government that are entitled to executive privilege. The principle holds that these high government officials can withhold information from the U.S. Congress, the court systems and the American public.

There is no specific clause in the U.S. Constitution that provides executive privilege, but different administrations have claimed that executive privilege is implied by the Constitution due to separation of powers. The phrase was never explicitly stated until the Dwight D. Eisenhower presidential administration, but almost all U.S. Presidents starting with George Washington have used some form of executive privilege.