The U.S. Justice Department has thrown its weight behind Jeffrey Clark, a former senior official once central to Donald Trump’s post-election maneuvers, urging a Washington appeals court to reject efforts to strip him of his law license.
In a rare move, the department filed a friend-of-the-court brief describing the case against Clark as an alarming instance of “ethics complaints turned into political weapons.” Officials warned that punishing federal attorneys for internal decision-making could have a chilling effect on future government lawyers.
The D.C. Court of Appeals is now reviewing a recommendation from the city’s Board on Professional Responsibility that Clark be disbarred for his role in attempting to use the Justice Department to cast doubt on the 2020 election results.
Clark, who held a senior post in the DOJ during Trump’s presidency, was accused of preparing a draft letter to Georgia officials claiming the department had uncovered major election concerns—a statement DOJ leaders ultimately refused to send. The letter, critics argued, was designed to pave the way for alternate slates of electors that would favor Trump despite Joe Biden’s certified victory.
Three former Republican attorneys general—Jeff Sessions, Bill Barr, and Michael Mukasey—also intervened in the case, arguing that disciplinary officials had crossed constitutional lines by probing internal DOJ deliberations.
Clark’s attorney described the case as proof that the D.C. Bar had “lost its bearings,” while disciplinary officials declined to comment.
Clark currently oversees a key division within the White House’s Office of Management and Budget. His name, however, remains deeply tied to the final, chaotic weeks of Trump’s presidency—when plans to install him as acting attorney general collapsed under threats of mass resignations.
Several of Trump’s other allies from that period have faced similar professional reckonings. Rudy Giuliani and Kenneth Chesebro have already been disbarred, while John Eastman continues to fight disbarment in California.
The outcome of Clark’s case now rests with the D.C. Court of Appeals, where the Justice Department’s defense of one of its own adds a politically charged twist to an already volatile chapter in America’s post-election legal battles.
