For years, conservatives have watched as political insiders weaponized the legal system against their opponents. The pattern became all too familiar. Accusations flew. Investigations dragged on. Media outlets breathlessly reported every allegation as fact.

Meanwhile, those who orchestrated these partisan witch hunts faced zero consequences. They collected their paychecks, appeared on cable news shows, and moved on to their next target. But the days of consequence-free political lawfare might finally be coming to an end.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday targeting Perkins Coie, a prominent Seattle-based law firm with deep ties to Democratic and liberal organizations. The order suspends security clearances for the firm’s attorneys and instructs federal agencies to review all contracts with the company.

From ‘CBS News’:

“This is an absolute honor to sign. What they’ve done is just terrible. It’s weaponization — you could say weaponization against a political opponent, and it should never be allowed to happen again,” Mr. Trump said as he prepared to sign the executive order in the Oval Office.

The executive order directs the attorney general, intelligence director, and other agency heads to suspend active security clearances held by Perkins Coie attorneys pending review. It also restricts their access to government buildings when such access could threaten national security.

The Steele Dossier Connection

Why Perkins Coie? The firm played a central role in one of the most notorious political hit jobs in modern American history.

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Perkins Coie hired Fusion GPS to conduct opposition research on then-candidate Trump’s potential ties to Russia. This arrangement was orchestrated by Marc Elias, a well-connected partner at the firm who served as Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign lawyer.

Fusion GPS then retained former British spy Christopher Steele, whose infamous “dossier” of research circulated among journalists and government officials in Washington. The dossier claimed Russia was engaged in a longstanding effort to aid Trump and had amassed compromising information about him.

But the material has since been thoroughly discredited. Special counsel John Durham’s 2023 report on the origins of the FBI’s Russia investigation stated that FBI investigators who tried to corroborate Steele’s findings were “unable to verify a single substantive allegation.” Yet this flimsy collection of rumors and innuendo fueled years of investigations and media hysteria.

Pattern of Accountability

This isn’t Trump’s first move to hold accountable those who targeted him through dubious legal means. Last month, he signed a similar order affecting Covington & Burling, a law firm that provided legal services to special counsel Jack Smith, who brought two criminal cases against Trump that were dropped after his election victory.

The president has also revoked security clearances for former intelligence officials who signed a letter falsely suggesting Hunter Biden’s laptop was Russian disinformation. The pattern is clear: those who abused their positions to target political opponents are finally facing consequences.

A spokesperson for Perkins Coie called the executive order “patently unlawful” and vowed to challenge it. No surprise there. When you’ve spent years bending the rules to target conservatives, being held accountable probably feels like persecution.

Taking On Progressive Legal Influence

The executive order goes beyond security clearances. It also calls for a “holistic review of unlawful DEI practices” at major law firms nationwide, aligning with Trump’s broader efforts to challenge diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that have become entrenched in corporate America.

Perkins Coie itself faced a lawsuit over its diversity fellowship program in 2023, later deciding to open the program to all first-year law students rather than limiting it to specific demographic groups. Apparently, merit-based selection wasn’t progressive enough.

Attorney General Pam Bondi is leading a “Weaponization Working Group” to review officials who investigated Trump, including Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and New York Attorney General Letitia James. The message is clear: the era of politically-motivated legal persecution is over.

While Perkins Coie still represents Democrats, its influence has diminished since Marc Elias left in 2021 to establish his own elections-focused firm. But the damage was already done. The Steele dossier’s false claims dominated headlines for years and cast a shadow over Trump’s first term. Now, the architects of that scheme are finally getting a taste of their own medicine.

Key Takeaways:

• Trump’s executive order suspends security clearances for Perkins Coie attorneys who helped orchestrate the discredited Steele dossier.
• The firm hired Fusion GPS to conduct opposition research that fueled years of baseless Russia investigations against Trump.
• The order also targets DEI practices at major law firms.

Sources: CBS News, International Business Times, POLITICO