Trump targets law firm Paul Weiss, restricting government access
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(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday suspending security clearances of Mark Pomerantz and those who work at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. The order also restricts government access to lawyers and employees at the New York-based law firm.
“Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order to suspend security clearances held by individuals at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP (Paul Weiss) pending a review of whether such clearances are consistent with the national interest,” the White House said in a fact sheet.
Pomerantz oversaw the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office’s investigation into Trump and his business practices.
Notably, the executive order was signed the same day that Trump spoke at the Department of Justice, where he attacked those who prosecuted him.
The new executive order is the third time Trump has taken action against a law firm. On Wednesday, a federal judge temporarily blocked parts of Trump’s executive order targeting Perkins Coie, ruling the order was unconstitutional.
The language in this executive order mirrors that of the order that targeted Perkins Coie.
Judge Beryl Howell said the actions being taken by the Trump administration targeting these firms are “terrifying” to the legal community and noted that the DOJ’s arguments in support sent “chills down my spine.”
This firm also has other high-profile Democrats among its ranks, including former Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former Homeland Security Secretary Jey Johnson, and was among the biggest donors to Democrats and former Vice President Kamala Harris during the 2024 election.
“The executive order is focused on the activities of Mark Pomerantz, who retired from the firm in 2012 and went on to work at the District Attorney’s office nearly a decade later,” Paul Weiss said in a statement to ABC News. “Mr. Pomerantz has not been affiliated with the firm for years. The terms of a similar order were enjoined as unconstitutional earlier this week by a federal district court judge.
ABC News’ Alexander Mallin and Katherine Faulders contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Following reports of alleged impropriety by Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, the top Republican and Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee have quietly made a request for additional information from the veterans organization Hegseth once ran, as well as the district attorney in Monterey County, California, according to communications reviewed by ABC News.
The committee appears to be looking deeper into recently reported accusations of a 2017 sexual assault as well as allegations of financial misconduct on Hegseth’s part, both of which Hegseth has denied.
The allegations have created an uphill climb for the former Fox News host, who can only afford to lose the votes of three Senate Republicans when his confirmation comes up for a vote in the coming weeks.
The committee’s requests, which were made in early December, ask that documents be provided to the Senate Armed Services Committee no later than Monday, Jan. 6, just over a week before Hegseth is scheduled to appear before the panel for his public confirmation hearing on Jan. 14.
The requests, reviewed by ABC News, show that the top Republican on the committee, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and the top Democrat, Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., sought additional information from the Monterey County district attorney concerning allegations of sexual assault that were levied against Hegseth in 2017 and first reported in November, following Trump’s announcement of Hegseth as his DOD pick.
The Monterey Police Department released a report last month detailing how a woman told investigators in October 2017 that she had encountered Hegseth at an event afterparty at a California hotel where both had been drinking, and claimed that he sexually assaulted her.
When police approached Hegseth as part of their investigation, he denied the accusation and “stated that the engagement … was mutual,” the police report said.
No charges were filed, although Hegseth subsequently paid the woman as part of a settlement agreement, which Hegseth’s attorney said was only because Hegseth feared his career would suffer if her allegations were made public. The agreement stated that Hegseth made no admission of wrongdoing in the matter.
Though the police report was made public in November, sources said members of the Senate Armed Services Committee were seeking any evidence beyond what was included in the report, as well as any documents containing legal analysis or recommendations.
The Monterey County District Attorney responded to the committee’s request on Dec. 20, informing the committee that the office did not have any additional evidence in the case beyond the publicly available police report, according to a letter from the DA’s office to the committee obtained by ABC News.
The DA did note, however, that — while they possess only a case summary and a memo declining to prosecute Hegseth — some of the other records the committee requested contain protected work by attorneys, and they declined to provide some of them due to their protected status.
Spokespeople for both Wicker and Reed declined to comment to ABC News.
In an interview with conservative media personality and former Fox News host Megyn Kelly in early December, Hegseth admitting to being in a hotel room with the woman but denied raping her.
“Absolutely not. Absolutely not. I’ve been honest about that encounter, starting with law enforcement,” he said when asked if he had raped a woman.
“I may have been drinking, but I was cognizant enough to remember every single detail,” he said. “And I’m not here to say that my conduct was good — you know, being in a hotel room with someone that’s, you know, not the person you’re with is not OK. I own up to that, and I’ve had to own up to that, and that’s been difficult.”
The senators are also seeking information from Concerned Veterans for America, a veterans organization for which Hegseth was once CEO, after a New Yorker story contained allegations that Hegseth engaged in financial mismanagement and sexist behavior while at the helm of that organization. Hegseth has broadly denied the allegations.
The committee has requested all documents related to Hegseth’s employment, any financial records and tax returns related to his management position at the organization, and any written documentation alleging wrongdoing or misconduct by Hegseth.
A representative for Concerned Veterans for America did not respond to requests for comment from ABC News.
Reached by ABC News, Hegseth’s attorney, Timothy Parlatore, maintained that his client is innocent and said that Hegseth is “cooperating fully with any requests for information from the committee.”
Trump publicly endorsed Hegseth last month after the allegations of misconduct initially got Hegseth a rocky reception on Capitol Hill.
“Pete Hegseth is doing very well. He will be a fantastic, high energy, Secretary of Defense,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform. “Pete is a WINNER, and there is nothing that can be done to change that!!!”
Wicker, who will oversee Hegseth’s nomination hearing before the Armed Services Committee, has repeatedly signaled that he’s interested in a thorough vetting of the candidate.
In early December, amid speculation that Hegseth might not submit to a traditional FBI background check, Wicker told ABC News that it would be his preference to see such a background check carried out.
The Republican said the committee was, at the time, “looking at the way it’s been done traditionally and getting information about that, as to who actually orders the FBI background check.”
When pushed by ABC News about a background check on Hegseth, Wicker said, “I would prefer a full background check, yes.”
Hegseth has since been submitted for a full FBI screening, according to his attorney.
He’s also met with several senators on Capitol Hill, including Wicker, and recently appeared to be gaining support.
Wicker has not yet publicly endorsed Hegseth, but following their meeting he said he thought Hegseth would be in “pretty good shape” regarding his confirmation.
(WASHINGTON) — Dozens of Department of Education employees received letters as business hours closed Friday placing them on administrative leave, according to a copy of one letter obtained by ABC News.
While no specific reason was given, some employees told ABC News they believe the only common thread among them is that they attended a voluntary training called the “Diversity Change-Agent Training Program.”
The letter states that the administrative leave notice is not for disciplinary purposes. Rather, it’s being issued under President Donald Trump’s executive order on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and “further guidance” from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, according to the letter.
Per the letter, employees will receive full pay and benefits through the end of the administrative leave.They are not required to do work-related tasks during this time, nor are they required to come into the office. Employees who were placed on leave also had their government email access suspended as they received the letters. There’s no set time for the leave period, according to the letter.
The letters have caused a frenzy throughout the department, as some employees had been locked out of their accounts and had to check their private email addresses for the notice, according to Sheria Smith, president of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 252.
Smith told ABC News more than 50 employees in “extremely diverse roles” within the department received the email notices to their government email addresses or their private email accounts after regular business hours over the weekend.
ABC News spoke with three Department of Education employees who received the letters and described their leave as “paid administrative hell” since Friday evening.
“It’s very, very, unsettling,” one department employee of over 20 years, who works in Washington, D.C., told ABC News. “I don’t get it. What’s my crime? What have I done?”
Smith said the positions of Department of Education employees placed on leave run the gamut, from senior civil rights attorneys to attorneys for borrower defense to press specialists. She said she feared more letters would be sent in the coming days.
An attorney who works for the department in Washington, D.C., said they were put on leave from their “dream job.” The employee has two children and received the notice after putting them to bed on Friday night, they said. The person said Friday was tough and the news was shocking to receive, but now they’re feeling “different levels” of sadness.
“My mood felt a little bit different just waking up knowing that I wasn’t going to be working,” the employee told ABC News.
“But I just feel like there’s a lot of information that I’m trying to process and, with small kids, it’s like you’re trying to balance a lot,” the employee added.
Trump’s rhetoric — including threatening for months to shutter the Department of Education — has created fear throughout the department, according to Smith.
“People took these jobs because they care about the mission,” Smith told ABC News. “And so it absolutely impacts us. You know, the very thing that brought us to these jobs we’re unable to do.”
The department employee with two small children has worked for the department for just over four years and comes from a family of educators. The employee said education is the “great equalizer,” and the Department of Education benefits everyone.
“I believe in the department,” the department attorney said, adding: “I always wanted to work here.”
In a statement to ABC News, Department of Education Deputy Assistant Secretary for Communications Madi Biedermann said the president was elected to enact “unprecedented reform” that is merit-based and efficient at serving the interests of the American people.
“We are evaluating staffing in line with the commitment to prioritizing meaningful learning ahead of divisive ideology in schools and putting student outcomes above special interests,” Biedermann wrote.
ABC News has reached out to the White House for comment.
Meanwhile, the three department employees who spoke to ABC News said they’re completely stumped on why they were issued administrative leave notices. The department employee with decades of experience in Washington also said it’s puzzling, in part, because during Trump’s first term, managers were evaluated on upholding DEI standards via a department performance rating system.
“We were expected to do DEI,” the employee said. “That’s what Trump and [then-Education Secretary] Betsy DeVos wanted us to do. They wanted to do that. They put it in our [performance] plans. We did not put that in our plans. And not only that, it is in every manager’s plan in the department, not just people that are on administrative leave.”
“Every single person in the Department of Education that’s a supervisor or a manager right now has [DEI] in their performance plan — that is programmed in by the department,” the employee added.
The administrative leave notices may have been tied to a two-day “Diversity Change-Agent Training Program,” a facilitator-led training, according to training document slides obtained by ABC News. The training took place over two days dating as far back as March 2019, under DeVos and during Trump’s first term, according to a February 2019 email obtained by ABC News with the subject “Diversity Change Agent Course.”
The training program aimed to create specific action plans to “drive diversity and inclusion” and increase creativity and innovation. The program also challenged employees to achieve greater results by championing the diversity of its workforce while creating and sustaining an inclusive environment, according to the training document slides.
Another department employee, who took the 2019 training and works remotely out of the New York offices, called the notice “bizarre,” especially since the 2019 training occurred during the president’s first term.
“The whole thing is bizarre,” the department employee told ABC News. “Betsy DeVos — and [Trump’s] prior administration — was a decent champion of these programs, and they didn’t come with any warning to me to say, ‘Hey, taking this training might lead to an adverse personnel action one day,’ right? So it’s just strange how they can retroactively apply something.”
The department employees on leave who spoke to ABC News said they have no official DEI responsibilities in their roles. All three department employees who spoke with ABC News also confirmed the only DEI-like program that would potentially be barred under Trump’s executive order would be the change-agent training sessions.
However, to their knowledge, the three employees on leave said there’s no official list or way of matching the employees on administrative leave with the training programs. Even though they’re convinced these trainings link them to the Trump administration’s definition of DEI, the employees haven’t confirmed why they’re on leave, according to the ones who spoke to ABC News.
The employee who works out of New York has more than a dozen years of experience in administering federal programs. Multiple other employees on administrative leave that this employee spoke to over the weekend said they also took the 2019 training, according to the employee.
“That’s the only thing we can think of that any of us did,” the employee said.
After reaching out to other colleagues with the same titles, the employee in New York said, they “pieced it together.” This employee said they took at least three training programs like the diversity change-agent training program since the initial training.
Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo/Bloomberg via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — As President Donald Trump was sworn in for his second term, a long list of political leaders, tech CEOs, celebrities and others were in attendance in the U.S. Capitol.
Former Vice President Mike Pence was seen in the Rotunda, as well as former President Barack Obama, former President Bill Clinton and former first lady Hillary Clinton. Former President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush were also there.
Former first lady Michelle Obama — who has attended every inauguration since 2009, including Trump’s first swearing-in ceremony in 2017 — was not present.
Former President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden, as well as former Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff, were in attendance.
Several major tech CEOs were also there, including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook. Joe Rogan, whose podcast Trump appeared on during the campaign, was seen in the Rotunda.
Chinese Vice President Han Zheng was also attending the event.
Many GOP leaders were seen in the Capitol, including former Republican leader Sen. Mitch McConnell, former U.S. Speaker of the House John Boehner, Sen. Marco Rubio, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and Sen. Tom Cotton.
Numerous Democrats were also present, including New York Mayor Eric Adams, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.
Spotted in the Emancipation Hall overflow room were YouTube celebs Jake and Logan Paul, UFC fighter Conor McGregor and podcaster Theo Von.
