Perkins Coie, law firm targeted by Trump, wins temporary restraining order

[LetMyPeopleVote]

11. No career DOJ attorney would touch this case and so Bonde's chief of staf/acting No. 3 DOJ official argued this case

This is a great summary of the case. Judge Howell was pissed. The fact that a political appointee had to argue this case amuses me

Link to tweet

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/12/perkins-coie-trump-executive-order-025783

Howell’s ruling is a temporary restraining order, meaning it blocks key provisions of the executive order while litigation continues. In emphatic remarks from the bench following an emergency hearing Wednesday, Howell expressed grave concern that Trump’s order would intimidate other law firms, discouraging them from taking on causes or people at odds with the administration.

“I am sure that many in the legal profession are watching in horror at what Perkins Coie is going through here,” said the judge, an appointee of President Barack Obama. “The order casts a chilling harm of blizzard proportions across the legal profession.”

The hearing featured an unusual appearance by the Justice Department’s chief of staff and acting No. 3 official, Chad Mizelle, who argued in defense of Trump’s order. Mizelle said Trump has largely unchecked authority to single out individuals or organizations as threatening to government interests.

“The president of the United States … is authorized under the Constitution to find certain individuals and certain companies are not trustworthy with the nations’ secrets,” Mizelle said.