Donald Trump’s lies about a “rigged election” are falling apart. Some of his allies finally, gradually seem to be acknowledging Joe Biden as president-elect. And Rudy Giuliani, the man tasked with uncovering evidence to back up the president’s voter fraud, might as well move his next unhinged press conference from Four Seasons Total Landscaping to the Acme Corporation. Things are not going great in Trumpworld.
It’s not surprising, then, that law firms aren’t exactly lining up to represent the president in his efforts to overturn the will of the American people. Last week, the firm Snell & Wilmer withdrew from the president’s case in Arizona, where it is based. On Thursday night, Porter Wright Morris & Arthur, the firm that had led the campaign’s legal challenge in Pennsylvania, extricated itself from the suit it filed on Trump’s behalf earlier this week alleging “irregularities” in the vote. “Plaintiffs and Porter Wright have reached a mutual agreement that plaintiffs will be best served if Porter Wright withdraws,” the firm said in a court filing, following reports that attorneys there weren’t thrilled about their company’s role in Trump’s attack on the vote. And while Jones Day has continued representing Trump, the firm has seemed increasingly uneasy about helping the president undermine democracy. “To me, it seems extremely shortsighted,” a Jones Day lawyer said of Trump’s anti-democratic challenge.
Hilariously, the Trump campaign has chalked up the firms’ cold feet to political correctness. “Cancel Culture has finally reached the courtroom,” Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh said after Porter Wright backed out in Pennsylvania. But the withdrawals reflect the campaign’s dimming legal prospects—and, presumably, a discomfort on behalf of the firms with their names being associated with the president’s ugly efforts to erode the peaceful transfer of power. They are also likely hoping to avoid the humiliation that has been suffered by the Trump lawyers who have had to represent the campaign’s dubious positions in court, where their arguments have wilted under basic questions from judges.
“Are your observers in the counting room?” Pennsylvania Judge Paul Diamond asked in one infamous exchange, after the Trump campaign called for Philadelphia to stop its vote count if Republican observers were not present.
“There’s a non-zero number of people in the room,” the Trump campaign attorney replied.
“I’m asking you as a member of the bar of this court,” Diamond said. “Are people representing the plaintiffs in that room?”
“Yes,” the lawyer replied.
“I’m sorry,” Diamond said. “Then what’s your problem?”
Firms like Porter Wright might have enjoyed profiting from their relationship with Trumpworld, but presenting a case as flimsy as the president’s doesn’t help their reputation. “The country and the world are watching to see how America responds to the President’s shameful attack on the legitimacy of America’s voting process,” the nonprofit Lawyers Defending American Democracy wrote in an open letter signed by over 1,000 attorneys this week. “There has never been a more important time for America’s lawyers to acknowledge the importance of these solemn commitments, and to demand accountability for those lawyers and federal officials who do not live up to their oaths and ethical obligations.”
More Great Stories From Vanity Fair
— The 10 Moments When Trump Lost the 2020 Election
— Trump’s Plans to Barricade Himself in the Oval Office
— Joe Biden’s Campaign Manager Told the Political Future—And Was Right
— Republicans Are Standing by Trump, Even as the World Moves On
— A Vigil With Donald Trump’s Ghosts
— Kayleigh McEnany: White House Press Secretary and Donald Trump’s Election Cheerleader
— Cover Story: AOC’s Next Four Years
— From the Archive: Presidential Club Rules and Why Trump Will Be Left Out of the Fraternity
— Not a subscriber? Join Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now.