Dems request details on White House communication with law firms – Washington Examiner
Senators Richard Blumenthal and Jamie Raskin are seeking details from law firms that reached agreements with the Trump administration after being targeted by its executive orders. These orders punished law firms associated with Trump’s political opponents, imposing actions such as restricting access to government buildings and revoking security clearances for their lawyers. Blumenthal and Raskin described these executive orders as an “illegal shakedown” of the legal profession and in violation of constitutional rights.They expressed concern that compliance with trump’s demands could undermine democratic values and civil liberties. The lawmakers sent letters to specific firms, including Paul Weiss, which initially made a deal, and Willkie Farr & Gallagher, which recently followed suit. The inquiry coincides with Raskin and Senator Adam Schiff’s plans for a hearing to address perceived attacks on the rule of law by the Trump administration, featuring testimonies from former Justice Department employees impacted by these actions.
Top Democrats request details on White House communication with targeted law firms
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) are asking law firms that were targeted by the Trump administration but then struck a deal with it for more information about how the agreement was reached.
Trump has signed several executive orders targeting prominent law firms with connections to his perceived political opponents, including people who have investigated him and lawyers who have challenged his administration. The punishments include blocking the firms’ lawyers from government buildings and removing their security clearances.
Blumenthal and Raskin said the “executive orders have turned into an illegal shakedown of the legal profession.”
Some of the law firms that Trump has targeted have challenged the order, but others have made behind-the-scenes deals with the administration, saying they will provide up to $100 million in pro bono services to causes Trump supports.
Blumenthal and Raskin wrote that the executive orders targeting law firms were “in blatant violation of the rights guaranteed to all Americans by the First, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments of the United States Constitution” and were “part of a broader effort by President Trump to use the powers of the presidency to intimidate and silence his perceived enemies.”
“These executive orders seek to impose harsh penalties on lawyers for the causes and clients they represent,” they wrote.
The two lawmakers sent the letter to law firms Paul Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, which first made a deal with Trump, and Willkie Farr & Gallagher, which most recently struck a deal last week.
“If every law firm targeted by the President were to accede to his unlawful demands, the resulting threat to Americans’ constitutional protections would erode our democratic values and cherished civil liberties, as well as cost the legal profession dearly and for many years to come,” one of the letters states, according to NBC News.
DEMOCRATIC ATTORNEYS GENERAL EMERGE AS SOME OF THE ONLY REAL RESISTANCE AGAINST TRUMP 2.0
Blumenthal is the top Democrat on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, and Raskin is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee.
The letters come as Raskin and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) plan to hold a “shadow hearing” Monday to highlight what they believe is an attack on the rule of law from the Trump administration. The hearing will feature testimonies from former employees at the Department of Justice who have been fired or resigned due to actions from the Trump administration.
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