On March 6, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order revoking the security clearances of all employees at Perkins Coie LLP, a major law firm long associated with Democratic causes, after evidence surfaced of its active involvement in several conspiracies targeting him. The decision zeroes in on the firm’s role in commissioning the Steele Dossier in 2016, a document compiled by Fusion GPS under Perkins Coie’s direction for Hillary Clinton’s campaign, which falsely alleged ties between Trump and Russia. The dossier’s claims were thoroughly discredited by Special Counsel John Durham’s 2023 investigation, which found Perkins Coie’s actions amounted to a deliberate attempt to mislead the FBI and the public. Standing in the Oval Office, Trump declared the firm’s behavior a “clear and present danger to national security,” accusing it of weaponizing legal resources to sabotage his presidency from its earliest days.

The administration presented additional proof of Perkins Coie’s conspiratorial efforts, including its legal work with billionaire George Soros to dismantle election integrity laws across multiple states. Documents released by the White House show the firm coordinated with activist groups to file lawsuits against voter ID measures, actions Trump’s team says were designed to rig electoral systems against him and his supporters. Further, Perkins Coie’s representation in high-profile cases—like the 2018 challenge to Trump’s military transgender ban and the 2020 push to block his immigration reforms—demonstrates a sustained campaign to thwart his agenda through judicial means. These efforts, combined with the dossier scandal, convinced the administration that the firm’s access to classified briefings and federal facilities posed an unacceptable risk, prompting the immediate clearance revocation to safeguard sensitive government operations.
 

The move has sent shockwaves through Washington, with Perkins Coie denouncing it as an “illegal assault on due process” and promising a swift court challenge, while Trump’s allies celebrate it as overdue justice. The executive order also initiates a review of 15 other law firms for similar political misconduct, signaling a broader purge of what Trump calls “disloyal players” in the legal establishment. Already, the firm’s lawyers have been barred from secure federal sites, disrupting ongoing cases and contracts. This bold action, following a similar revocation against Covington & Burling, underscores Trump’s determination to neutralize threats from within the system, even as it ignites fierce debate over whether it’s a legitimate defense of national security or a chilling act of retribution against a firm that dared to cross him. The consequences are unfolding in real time, with the nation watching as this unprecedented clash reshapes the intersection of law, politics, and power.