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Amid the swirl of charges and counter charges, investigations and prosecutions, one thing is clear:
It’s good to be a lawyer in the Trump era.
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A federal judge just dismissed a case that attempted to force Hunter Biden to register with the Justice Department as a foreign agent for Ukraine and China. The suit was brought by a group founded by top White House official Stephen Miller, which was found not to have standing.
Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, and his wife Melissa Cohen Biden, leave the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building on June 07, 2024 in Wilmington, Delaware. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
The former president’s son needed a lawyer – just as he did during criminal proceedings that led to his guilty plea, until his dad broke his word and pardoned him.
The DOJ plans to ask the Supreme Court to intervene in Trump’s appeal of an $83-million verdict in a defamation case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll. She needed a lawyer. Trump is represented by lawyers for the Justice Department, which often seems to function as his private firm. His appeal could end her case.
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And, of course, he needed lawyers when he was out of office and subjected to four criminal investigations.
Washington has long been a magnet for those with a law degree, given the vast sprawl of federal agencies, Capitol Hill staff and lobbying groups.
But it’s never been like this.
Trump needed attorneys to defend him during two impeachments – and the House investigating committees lawyered up as well.
The president engineered charges against fired FBI chief James Comey, who had to hire a lawyer until the case was thrown out of court. Now Trump has triggered a second indictment–over the 86*47 seashell photo–and Comey needs a lawyer again. The same goes for New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose indictment was also tossed out.
Former FBI Director James Comey. ( Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
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Trump yesterday declared that “lunatic” Hakeem Jeffries be “charged with INCITING VIOLENCE,” seeming to suggest the minority leader’s rhetoric was linked to the third assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents Dinner. Jeffries had called for “maximum warfare,” which he described as an effort to secure more seats in the redistricting wars.
Trump has sued the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, CBS and ABC, among other media outlets, requiring heavy-duty legal representation.
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It isn’t only Trump. When FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced a review of local station licenses tied to Desney/ABC – just after calling for Jimmy Kimmel’s firing – he created an opening for lots of billable hours. The review could drag on for years and is unlikely to succeed.
FBI Director Kash Patel filed a $250-million suit against the Atlantic for a negative profile that questioned his conduct in office and alleged drinking habits – but no hint of classified information.
An image shows the Department of Justice and FBI headquarters with an overlay of FBI Director Kash Patel. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Two House members who resigned over sexual misconduct allegations, Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales – rather than face certain expulsion–certainly needed legal advice.
A third, Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, resigned after being convicted of stealing $5 million in FEMA funds.
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But wrongdoing is not required. DOGE had lawyers. Think tanks have lawyers. Unions have lawyers. Environmental groups have lawyers.
Big Tech giants, which are increasingly cozying up to the Trump administration, have stepped up their legal game in Washington.
The ousted Labor secretary, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, is under investigation by the department’s inspector general.
Trump keeps firing prosecutors he deems insufficiently aggressive and replacing them with new lawyers.
Pro-life groups have sued to stop allowing mail-order access to the abortion pill mifepristone, but failed for now to get anything but a temporary procedural ruling from the Supreme Court.
And then there are the endless appeals that drag on through seemingly endless rounds.
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The District of Columbia is a place where everyone wants something. And that usually requires legal firepower.
I’m sure most of these lawyers do a fine job. This is not a knock on the profession. But like the gold prospectors of yore, they go where the glitter is,
