A federal judge spanked President Trump on Wednesday over his attempt to block the government from doing business with the law firm that helped Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign by promoting the now-discredited “Steele Dossier.”
Perkins Coie had sued, saying the executive order was unconstitutional retaliation that would upend the way law firms operate.
Judge Beryl Howell sided with them, saying Mr. Trump’s move “sends little chills down my spine.”
She issued a temporary restraining order blocking the government from following through on parts of Mr. Trump’s executive order that ordered Perkins Coie’s contracts with the government to be scrutinized, its lawyers restricted from entering government buildings, and federal employees limited in their ability to engage with the firm.
Mr. Trump, in his March 6 order, had said the firm had engaged in “dishonest and dangerous activity.”
Perkins Coie was the conduit for the Clinton campaign to hire Fusion GPS, which employed Christopher Steele, who compiled a dossier of salacious and unsubstantiated rumors about Mr. Trump.
That dossier helped fuel the FBI’s now-discredited probe into Mr. Trump, which included fabricating evidence to obtain a secret surveillance warrant.
“This egregious activity is part of a pattern,” the president said.
He added: “Perkins Coie has worked with activist donors including George Soros to judicially overturn popular, necessary, and democratically enacted election laws, including those requiring voter identification. In one such case, a court was forced to sanction Perkins Coie attorneys for an unethical lack of candor before the court.”
Mr. Trump ordered a review of security clearances held by Perkins Coie employees. That provision was not blocked by the judge.
