A federal judge on Friday issued a permanent ruling barring the Trump administration from implementing an executive order targeting the law firm Perkins Coie, describing President Donald Trump’s efforts to crack down on law firms as an unconstitutional and “unprecedented attack” on the basic foundations of the rule of law.
“No American president has ever before issued executive orders like the one at issue in this lawsuit targeting a prominent law firm with adverse actions to be executed by all Executive branch agencies but, in purpose and effect, this action draws from a playbook as old as Shakespeare, who penned the phrase: ‘The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers,'” U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell said in a scathing opinion accompanying her ruling.
“In a cringe-worthy twist on the theatrical phrase ‘Let’s kill all the lawyers,’ EO 14230 takes the approach of ‘Let’s kill the lawyers I don’t like,’ sending the clear message: lawyers must stick to the party line, or else,” she added.
The ruling from Howell is a rapid rebuke of the government’s actions in a case that is just one challenge of several against Trump’s efforts to target law firms that have either represented his political opponents or employed them.
Trump’s executive order, which cited Perkins Coie’s former representation of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign, sought to strip security clearances from the firm’s lawyers, virtually halting any dealings with the federal government and restricting its attorneys from accessing most federal buildings.
In March, Howell issued a temporary restraining order blocking the Trump administration from implementing key parts of the executive order.
During a court hearing on April 23, as Howell contemplated a longer lasting block, she again voiced concerns about the constitutionality of Trump’s move and sharply questioned government lawyers.
On the day of that hearing, Trump took to social media to criticize the judge by name over her assignment to the case.
Trump has issued similar executive orders targeting four other law firms, while at least nine law firms have entered into controversial deals with the White House, offering millions of dollars in pro bono work on causes supported by conservatives to avoid being targeted.
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