Just days after CNN reported that high-priced Trump lawyer Christopher Kise was being “sidelined” by other lawyers in his efforts to defend Trump from potential charges under the Espionage Act, a new report from the Washington Post is showing new details about why Kise has fallen out of favor.
According to the Post’s sources, Kise has tried to get Trump to search for an off-ramp in the DOJ investigation into the twice-impeached former president’s decision to store top-secret government documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort and then refuse to return them even after receiving a subpoena.
Kise has reportedly informed Trump that lobbing aggressive attacks on the DOJ makes it much more likely that he will face criminal charges, whereas taking a less combative approach could help convince the DOJ to resole the case “quietly” without charges.
So far, however, Kise’s pleas have fallen on deaf ears.
“A Wednesday night court filing from Trump’s team was combative, with defense lawyers questioning the Justice Department’s truthfulness and motives,” the paper writes. “Kise, whose name was listed alongside other lawyers’ in previous filings over the past four weeks, did not sign that one— an absence that underscored the division among the lawyers.”
Trump paid a $3 million retainer fee to secure the services of Kise, a former Florida solicitor general who was seen by many legal experts as adding some heft to an otherwise lightweight legal team, which also includes former One America New Network host Christina Bobb, Florida insurance lawyer Lindsey Halligan, and Alina Habba, who previously served as general counsel for a parking-garage firm.
