Donald Trump is being drawn to the lawyers who enable his worst instincts and is setting up a collision with the Justice Department.
Trump seems, at least for now, to be heeding advice from those who have indulged his desire to fight.
The approach could leave the former president on a collision course with the Justice Department, as he relies on a legal trust that includes three attorneys facing their own potential legal risks. The first, Christina Bobb, has told other Trump allies that she is willing to be interviewed by the Justice Department about her role in responding to the subpoena, according to people familiar with the conversations.
Another, M. Evan Corcoran, has been counseled by colleagues to hire a criminal defense lawyer because of his response to the subpoena, people familiar with those conversations said, but so far has insisted that is not necessary. The third, longtime Trump adviser Boris Epshteyn, saw his phone taken as part of the Justice Department’s probe of Trump’s fake elector scheme, and appeared before a Georgia grand jury Thursday.
Trump is taking advice from lawyers who have their own legal peril. Trump has ignored advice that he has retained telling him to shut his mouth and turn down the heat with the Justice Department. Trump was advised that once the government got the documents back, they might be willing to solve the matter quietly.
Since Donald Trump can’t get out of his own way, he decided to listen to the lawyers with their own legal problems, which were caused by their decision to associate with Trump and set up a situation that could end with criminal charges for Trump and his lawyers.
The failed former president is insisting on fighting the DOJ without a first-class legal team. Trump has legal problems all over the country that are both civil and criminal, but the decision to try to take on the Justice Department could be the most costly of all.
Mr. Easley is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association