New Trump Order Targets Firm That Once Employed ‘Unethical’ MSNBC Pundit: ‘Career Has Been Rooted in Weaponized Government’
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
President Donald Trump fired off another executive order targeting a law firm on Tuesday, this time taking aim at Jenner & Block because it once employed MSNBC legal analyst Andrew Weissmann.
Weissmann first came to public prominence as a member of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team, which during Trump’s first administration investigated the 2016 Trump campaign’s possible ties to Russia. Mueller’s report found no evidence of a conspiracy between the campaign and Russia, though it left open the possibility that Trump and his allies had obstructed the investigation.
Trump’s executive order began by alluding to previous orders like it, mandating the cancelation of any federal contracts a firm has and also revocation of a firm’s security clearance. The latter constraint can be debilitating for those whose work requires viewing sensitive documents at government facilities.
In his order, the president accused Jenner & Block of engaging in “lawfare” and “obvious partisan representations to achieve such ends.” He then singled out the firm’s past employment of Weissmann:
In addition, Jenner was “thrilled” to re-hire the unethical Andrew Weissmann after his time engaging in partisan prosecution as part of Robert Mueller’s entirely unjustified investigation. Andrew Weissmann’s career has been rooted in weaponized government and abuse of power, including devastating tens of thousands of American families who worked for the now defunct Arthur Andersen LLP, only to have his unlawfully aggressive prosecution overturned by the Supreme Court. The numerous reports of Weissman’s dishonesty, including pursuit of nonexistent crimes, bribery to foreign nationals, and overt demand that the Federal Government pursue a political agenda against me, is a concerning indictment of Jenner’s values and priorities.
The president has also targeted the firms Perkins Coie and Paul, Weiss. Perkins Coie has chosen to fight Trump’s order in court. Paul, Weiss – which Trump targeted over its employment of Mark Pomerantz, who investigated Trump while at the Manhattan District Attorney’s office – caved. Last week, Trump took a victory lap while announcing the firm had agreed to his demands, including $40 million in pro bono work for his administration.
