Tag: John Dowd

A bold new legal defense for Trump: Presidents cannot obstruct justice

The following article by Sari Horwitz and Philip Rucker was posted on the Washington Post website December 4, 2017:

John Dowd, one of President Trump’s lawyers in the Russia investigation, is photographed exiting a federal court in New York in 2011. (Brendan Mcdermid/Reuters)

The brazen assertion Monday by one of President Trump’s lawyers that a president cannot be found guilty of obstruction of justice signaled a controversial defense strategy in the wide-ranging Russia probe, as Trump’s political advisers are increasingly concerned about the legal advice he is receiving.

Trump tweeted over the weekend that he knew then-national security adviser Michael Flynn lied to the FBI about his contacts with the Russian ambassador before firing him in February — and before FBI Director James B. Comey said Trump asked him to be lenient while investigating Flynn. Experts said the president’s admission increased his legal exposure to obstruction-of-justice charges, one of the core crimes under investigation by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. Continue reading “A bold new legal defense for Trump: Presidents cannot obstruct justice”

President’s lawyer jumps into racial controversy by forwarding inflammatory email

The following article by Carol D. Leonnig, Amy Brittain and Aaron C. Davis was posted on the Washington Post website August 16, 2017:

While defending his initial reaction to the Charlottesville violence, President Trump on Aug. 15 said he wants “to know the facts” before making statements. Here are three times that he didn’t. (Video: Bastien Inzaurralde/Photo: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

President Trump’s lawyer on Wednesday fanned an already-incendiary racial debate by forwarding an email advocating protection of some Confederate monuments and claiming that the protest group Black Lives Matter had been infiltrated by terrorists.

Trump’s lawyer John Dowd told The Washington Post he “shares a lot of things with people” and said it was unfair to equate forwarding an email with espousing its contents. Continue reading “President’s lawyer jumps into racial controversy by forwarding inflammatory email”