Trump Suspends Security Clearances for Law Firm Employees Tied to Jack Smith’s Prosecutions

President Donald Trump signs a document in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington on Feb. 4, 2025. Reuters/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo

President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on Feb. 25 suspending the security clearances for employees at a Washington-based law firm who worked on the former special counsel Jack Smith’s investigations.

The memo targets attorneys at Covington & Burling LLP who assisted Smith. A White House official said that the Trump administration would be “suspending and putting under review the security clearances for the attorneys and employees at that firm who worked with Jack Smith’s team” due to them providing pro bono legal services to the investigations.

Smith investigated Trump in two cases: one based out of Washington regarding the president’s attempts to challenge the 2020 election, and the classified documents case based out of Florida. Trump has repeatedly called these investigations a “weaponization of government” and accused former President Joe Biden of directing his administration to pursue them at the Department of Justice.

The memo directs the attorney general and all heads of relevant agencies to “suspend any active security clearances held by Peter Koski and all members, partners, and employees of Covington & Burling LLP who assisted former Special Counsel Jack Smith during his time as Special Counsel, pending a review and determination of their roles and responsibilities.”

Additionally, the memo also terminates any involvement between the firm and any federal agency “to the maximum extent permitted by law” and directs the Office of Management and Budget to issue a memorandum to all federal agencies that will review any government contracts with Covington & Burling LLP.

On Tuesday, Trump said his team should target other firms that assisted the special counsel’s office. A White House official replied that the administration would be “looking at sort of the whole panoply of options.”

After signing the memo, the president suggested someone send the permanent marker he used to sign it to the former special counsel.

Covington & Burling LLP did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.

A federal judge on Jan. 20 declined to release the secret half of Smith’s investigation report, turning down a request for disclosure from American Oversight, a nonpartisan political watchdog group.

The group sought the release of the remaining portion of Smith’s report ahead of FBI Director Kash Patel’s Senate confirmation vote, arguing that the request was urgent because the documents contained information on the then-nominee.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who presided over the classified documents case, said in January that the Justice Department could not release volume two of the report because it would harm two co-defendants in the case, Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira.

The agency then released part one of Smith’s report, in which Smith said the investigation’s findings can prove that Trump had illegally attempted to overturn the 2020 election.

Trump has denied acting illegally in both cases.