The personal legal team:
After last May, when Trump fired FBI director James Comey and Mueller was then appointed as special counsel, Trump put outside lawyer Marc Kasowitz in charge of his personal legal defense. But Kasowitz only lasted about two months — he was pushed out in July, amidst the Trump team’s hapless response to the revelation of Don Jr.’s meeting with a Russian lawyer, and amidst news that Kasowitz had sent profane and threatening emails to a stranger (“Watch your back, bitch”).
Then, it was John Dowd who Trump anointed as his lead personal lawyer. Dowd had decades work of experience representing defendants accused of white-collar crimes, including in political scandals (and also, famously, investigated baseball player Pete Rose’s gambling scandal for Major League Baseball back in the 1980s). He resigned Thursday.
Trump’s personal legal team also includes Jay Sekulow, a longtime conservative activist lawyer, who frequently appears on television.
And just days ago, Joseph diGenova, a conservative lawyer had legal roles in high-profile political scandals for decades (and also frequently appears on television), joined Trump’s personal legal team too.
The White House legal team:
Inside the White House, meanwhile, Russia- and scandal-related legal matters were first handled by White House Counsel Don McGahn.
But last summer, the mustachioed Ty Cobb joined the White House and became its lead lawyer handling Mueller investigation matters — reportedly at Dowd’s suggestion. (Cobb also became famous for his repeated rosy claims that Mueller’s investigation would soon wrap up — claims that did not quite pan out.)
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