Trump strips security clearances from law firm tied to Jack Smith cases

FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump is expected to sign a memo Tuesday suspending the security clearances for employees of a top D.C.-based law firm who assisted in former special counsel Jack Smith’s investigations, Fox News has learned.

The memo, first reported by Fox News, outlines the administration’s sweeping plans to suspend security clearances for all counsel members involved in Jack Smith’s dual special counsel investigations into Trump, the White House confirmed.

It’s the latest in a string of punitive actions Trump has taken to strip power from his political and legal foes. 

The memo orders the federal government to review and terminate the engagement of law firm Covington & Burling by the U.S. government “to the maximum extent permitted by law,” and will conduct a detailed evaluation of funding decisions to ensure they with American citizens’ interests and the priorities of this Administration, as detailed in executive directives.

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Special Counsel Jack Smith arrives to give remarks on a recently unsealed indictment including four felony counts against former U.S. President Donald Trump on August 1, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Among those targeted is Peter Koski, the former deputy chief of the Justice Department’s public integrity section.  Covington vice chair Lanny Breuer, who helped lead the Justice Department’s criminal division under then-President Barack Obama, is also expected to be squarely in the crosshairs of the review. Breuer, for his part, had recruited Smith in 2010 to head up DOJ’s Public Integrity Section.

The two made headlines earlier this month after Politico reported they had been offering pro bono legal services to Jack Smith prior to his resignation from the Justice Department last month.

The White House said Tuesday that the firm had offered Smith $140,000 in free legal services.

In revoking the government clearances of top Justice Department personnel, the administration said Trump is “sending a clear message that the Federal Government will no longer tolerate the abuse of power by partisan actors who exploit their positions for political gain.”

“The Federal Government will review and terminate engagement of Covington & Burling LLP by the United States to the maximum extent permitted by law,” the memo is expected to say, according to a White House official.

Smith was tapped by then-Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022 to investigate the alleged effort by Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election, as well as Trump’s keeping of allegedly classified documents at his Florida residence after leaving the White House. 

He had previously indicted Trump in D.C. on charges stemming from his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. 

Smith also brought federal charges against Trump in Florida for his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House. 

Both cases were dropped after Trump’s election, in keeping with a longstanding Justice Department memo that states it is against DOJ policy to investigate a sitting president for federal criminal charges. 

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The memo says it is a violation of the separation of powers doctrine to do so.  They have also cited a July Supreme Court decision that widened the criteria for immunity for sitting presidents.

Covington & Burling LLP did not immediately respond to Fox News’s request for comment. 

This is a breaking news story. Check back soon for updates.