Joseph diGenova
Joseph diGenova | |
---|---|
United States Attorney for the District of Columbia | |
In office December 2, 1983 – March 1, 1988 | |
President | Ronald Reagan |
Preceded by | Stanley S. Harris |
Succeeded by | Jay B. Stephens |
Personal details | |
Born | Wilmington, Delaware, U.S. | February 22, 1945
Political party | Republican |
Spouse | |
Education | University of Cincinnati (BA) Georgetown University (JD) |
Joseph diGenova (born February 22, 1945) is an American
In March 2018, President Donald Trump announced that diGenova and Toensing would join his legal defense team during the
Career in law and politics
DiGenova was an aide to Republican Senator
U.S. attorney
As a U.S. attorney, diGenova led the prosecution of Jonathan Pollard, who pleaded guilty in 1987 to spying for Israel.[21]
He also led investigations into corruption in the administration of Washington, D.C., Mayor Marion Barry that led to convictions of 12 officials, including two deputy mayors.[23][2]
Counsel investigations
DiGenova later served as Independent Counsel investigating the 1992 preelection search of then-candidate Bill Clinton's passport file by officials of the George H. W. Bush administration.[24] DiGenova concluded that the passport search had been "stupid, dumb and partisan," but not illegal, and that the government should apologize to the officials who ordered the search.[24]
DiGenova and his wife, Victoria Toensing, started their Washington law firm, diGenova & Toensing, in January 1996.[4][25]
In 1997, diGenova was named Special Counsel to investigate the International Brotherhood of Teamsters; afterward he was named to an independent review board to monitor the Teamsters.[22]
Trump presidency
Scooter Libby
DiGenova called on President Trump to pardon Scooter Libby, adviser of Dick Cheney, who was found guilty of perjury in an investigation revolving around leaks of sensitive classified material.[26] DiGenova is married to Libby's lawyer, Victoria Toensing.[27] Trump pardoned Libby on April 13, 2018.[28]
Russian interference in the 2016 election
DiGenova, who frequently appears as a
In April 2018, diGenova called for the firing of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, said that special counsel Robert Mueller's team investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election were "legal terrorists" and called former FBI Director James Comey "a dirty cop".[5] In May 2018 tweet, Trump quoted diGenova as saying "The recusal of Jeff Sessions was an unforced betrayal of the President of the United States."[31]
On February 21, 2019, diGenova stated in the podcast of Laura Ingraham that the US is in a civil war and that he advises friends to prepare for total war by voting and buying guns.[32]
Kavanaugh appointment
On September 18, 2018, diGenova discounted charges that U.S.
Ukraine investigations
In July 2019, diGenova and his wife, Victoria Toensing, were hired by the Ukrainian oligarch
In August 2019, diGenova and Toensing met with Attorney General
In October 2019,
DiGenova and Toensing worked with Rudy Giuliani on opposition research from Ukraine to be used against the 2020 Democratic candidate Joe Biden, according to Fox News Sunday.[46] All three were working off the books, outside the administration, according to Fox News. "The only person in government who knows what they were doing is President Trump," Fox host Chris Wallace said.[47] DiGenova called the story "categorically false."[46]
DiGenova and Toensing are lawyers for John Solomon, a conservative columnist who has written stories favorable to Trump on scandals involving Ukraine and Russia. "John Solomon has been a client of our firm for a very long time," diGenova told Politico.[48]
In November 2019, in an appearance on Fox News, diGenova claimed that George Soros "controls a very large part of the career foreign service of the United States State Department" and "also controls the activities of FBI agents overseas who work for NOG's, work with NGO's. That was very evident in Ukraine."[49] The Open Society Foundation, founded by Soros, described diGenova's claims as "beyond rhetorical ugliness, beyond fiction, beyond ludicrous" and requested that Fox News provide an on-air retraction of diGenova's claims, and stop providing diGenova with a platform.[50] Although the network never publicly announced it had banned diGenova, as of September 2020[update], diGenova had not appeared on Fox following the incident.[51] In September 2020, diGenova said, "I don't know what George Soros has on Suzanne Scott, the head of Fox, but the bottom line is this: that network is compromised when it comes to Soros."[51]
In November 2020, President Donald Trump named diGenova, Toensing, Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis to join a legal team led by Rudy Giuliani to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election in which Trump was defeated.[20]
On November 30, 2020, diGenova used an appearance on
DiGenova and his wife were among several Trump associates who were emailed by
References
- ^ Lewis, Nancy (January 13, 1988). "Digenova Turns In Resignation". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
- ^ a b LaFraniere, Sharon (February 29, 1988). "Digenova's Legacy". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
- ^ "diGenova & Toensing". www.digenovatoensing.com. Archived from the original on December 1, 2019. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
- ^ a b Marcus, Ilana; Eaton, Joshua; Marcus, Ilana; Eaton, Joshua (November 12, 2019). "The Vicki & Joe Show: D.C. power couple hit airwaves as impeachment inquiry moves forward". Archived from the original on November 17, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
- ^ a b Sheth, Sonam (April 11, 2018). "Former federal prosecutor Joseph DiGenova calls for Rosenstein's firing on Fox News after Trump tells people to tune in to the 'big show'". Business Insider. Archived from the original on April 12, 2018. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
DiGenova and his wife, Victoria Toensing, both used to work within the US Justice Department, but later made their reputations peddling conspiracy theories on TV about the DOJ and FBI.
- ^ a b Haberman, Maggie; Schmidt, Michael S. (March 19, 2018). "Trump Hires Lawyer Who Has Pushed Theory That Justice Dept. Framed the President". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 22, 2018. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
- from the original on May 10, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- ^ Sheth, Sonam (March 19, 2018). "Trump is reportedly set to hire a new lawyer who called Comey 'a dirty cop' and accused the FBI of trying to 'frame' Trump". Business Insider. Archived from the original on May 11, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- ^ "The bizarre conspiracy theories peddled by Donald Trump's new lawyer". The Independent. March 20, 2018. Archived from the original on May 24, 2018. Retrieved May 31, 2018.
- Daily Intelligencer. Archivedfrom the original on August 18, 2018. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
DiGenova is known as a fierce defender of Trump who has used frequent guest appearances on Fox News to advance far-out conspiracy theories that the FBI is trying to frame the president.
- ^ Tibon, Amir (March 20, 2018). "Trump's New Lawyer: The Man Who Sent Jonathan Pollard to Jail". Haaretz. Archived from the original on August 18, 2018. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
Joseph diGenova has promoted conspiracy theories about a 'deep state' attempt to 'frame' Trump and his campaign for criminal activities
- ^ Breuninger, Kevin (March 27, 2018). "Here are the lawyers who quit or declined to represent Trump in the Mueller probe". CNBC. Archived from the original on August 18, 2018. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
DiGenova, a regular Fox News guest, had spouted conspiracy theories about the Mueller probe's motives against Trump.
- ^ [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]
- ^ Power, Lis (September 30, 2019). "Joe diGenova and Victoria Toensing have made over 90 appearances on Fox in 2019". Media Matters for America. Archived from the original on October 11, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
- ^ Bump, Philip (November 16, 2020). "Somehow, Trump keeps making his obvious electoral loss even more obvious". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ^ a b Haberman, Maggie; Landler, Mark; Schmidt, Michael S. (March 25, 2018). "Trump Won't Hire 2 Lawyers Whose Appointments Were Announced Days Ago". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 25, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
- ^ a b Baker, Stephanie; Reznik, Irina (October 18, 2019). "To Win Giuliani's Help, Oligarch's Allies Pursued Biden Dirt". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on October 19, 2019. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Becker, Jo; Bogdanich, Walt; Haberman, Maggie; Protess, Ben (November 25, 2019). "Why Giuliani Singled Out 2 Ukrainian Oligarchs to Help Look for Dirt". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 26, 2019. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
- ^ Protess, Ben (February 12, 2021). "Trump Justice Department sought to block search of Giuliani records". The New York Times – via San Juan Daily Star.
- ^ a b Stracqualursi, Veronica (November 14, 2020). "Trump puts Giuliani in charge of post-election legal fight after series of losses". CNN. Archived from the original on November 15, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
- ^ a b Kutner, Max (March 19, 2018). "Who Is Joseph diGenova, Trump's Newest Pick to Defend Him in Mueller Probe?". Newsweek. Archived from the original on March 26, 2018. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
- ^ a b Alfisi, Kathryn (February 2013). "A Conversation With Joseph diGenova". Washington Lawyer. Archived from the original on November 15, 2019. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
- from the original on September 24, 2018. Retrieved May 20, 2019.
- ^ a b Pincus, Walter (December 1, 1995). "Independent Counsel calls '92 Clinton passport search "stupid" but not illegal". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 26, 2018. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
- ^ "diGenova & Toensing". www.digenovatoensing.com. Archived from the original on September 15, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
- from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- ^ Swanson, Ian (April 13, 2018). "Trump pardons Scooter Libby, saying he was 'treated unfairly'". The Hill. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- ^ Liptak, Kevin (April 13, 2018). "Trump pardons ex-Cheney aide Scooter Libby". CNN. Archived from the original on June 1, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- ^ Lucey, Catherine (March 25, 2018). "Trump is staffing — or casting from Fox". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 26, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
- ^ Dawsey, Josh; Leonnig, Carol D.; Wagner, John (March 25, 2018). "In another blow to Trump's efforts to combat Russia probe, diGenova will no longer join legal team". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 25, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
- from the original on May 31, 2018. Retrieved May 31, 2018.
- Media Matters. February 21, 2019. Archivedfrom the original on February 22, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
- ^ Lemire, Jason (September 18, 2018). "Fox News guest claims Christine Blasey Ford will look like the 'loon that she is.' if she testifies against Brett Kavanaugh". Newsweek. Archived from the original on September 19, 2018. Retrieved September 19, 2018.
- ^ "Ex-Prosecutor General Shokin defends oligarch Firtash | KyivPost - Ukraine's Global Voice". KyivPost. September 27, 2019. Archived from the original on November 11, 2020. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Farrell, Greg; Reznik, Irina; Groendahl, Boris (September 23, 2019). "Trump-Friendly Lawyers Join Legal Team of Ukraine's Firtash". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on September 14, 2020. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Champlin, Reid (July 31, 2019). "Ukrainian oligarch and Michael Cohen attorney Lanny Davis cut ties as extradition looms". OpenSecrets. Archived from the original on February 19, 2020.
- ^ Winter, Tom (July 26, 2017). "DOJ: Ex-Manafort associate is top-tier comrade of Russian mobsters". NBC News. Archived from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ Grey, Stephen; Bergin, Tom; Musaieva, Sevgil; Anin, Roman (November 26, 2014). Woods, Richard (ed.). "Comrade Capitalism: The Kiev Connection". Reuters. Moscow/Kyiv. Archived from the original on September 7, 2019. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
- from the original on November 3, 2019. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
- ^ Zapotosky, Matt; Helderman, Rosalind S.; Hamburger, Tom; Dawsey, Josh (October 2, 2019). "Prosecutors flagged possible ties between Ukrainian gas tycoon and Giuliani associates". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 3, 2019. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
- ^ Viswanatha, Aruna; Ballhaus, Rebecca; Gurman, Sadie; Tau, Byron (October 11, 2019). "Two Giuliani Associates Who Helped Him on Ukraine Charged With Campaign-Finance Violations". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on October 13, 2019. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
- ^ Helderman, Rosalind S.; Itkowitz, Colby (November 23, 2019). "Top House Democrat says ethics probe of Nunes is likely over alleged meeting with Ukrainian about Bidens". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 24, 2019. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
- ^ "Witness Statement of Viktor Mikolajovich Shokin" (PDF). FactCheck.org. Annenberg Public Policy Center. September 4, 2019. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ Shuster, Simon (October 15, 2019). "Exclusive: How a Ukrainian Oligarch Wanted by U.S. Authorities Helped Giuliani Attack Biden". Time. Archived from the original on November 27, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ Dilanian, Ken; De Luce, Dan; Winter, Tom (October 16, 2019). "Oligarch Firtash linked to Giuliani pals' gas deals and Biden research". NBC News. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ a b Blitzer, Ronn (September 29, 2019). "Giuliani was not working alone in Biden Ukraine probe". Fox News. Archived from the original on September 30, 2019. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Baragona, Justin; Bixby, Scott (September 29, 2019). "Frequent Fox Guests diGenova and Toensing Reportedly Teamed Up With Giuliani on Ukraine-Biden". Archived from the original on September 30, 2019. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Bertrand, Natasha; Samuelsohn, Darren. "Lawyers for Ukrainian oligarch have another client: The columnist who pushed Biden corruption claims". Politico. Archived from the original on October 25, 2019. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
- ^ "Lou Dobbs guest Joe diGenova says George Soros controls a large part of the State Department and activities of FBI agents". Media Matters for America. November 13, 2019. Archived from the original on November 14, 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
- ^ Wemple, Eric (November 14, 2019). "Soros foundation requests banning of Joe diGenova from Fox News/Fox Business after anti-Semitic rant". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 14, 2019. Retrieved November 16, 2019.
- ^ a b Baragona, Justin (September 23, 2020). "Former Fox News Regular Joe diGenova Claims Network Is Beholden to George Soros". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on November 6, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ Acosta, Jim; Tapper, Jake; Cole, Devan (November 30, 2020). "Trump attorney issues call for violence against truth-telling former election cybersecurity official". CNN. Archived from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ Pengelly, Martin (December 1, 2020). "Trump lawyer: ex-election security chief Krebs should be 'taken out and shot'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ Sheth, Sonam (December 8, 2020). "The US's top former election security official has filed a lawsuit against a Trump lawyer who said he should be 'taken out at dawn and shot'". Business Insider. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
- ^ Woodruff Swan, Betsy (July 21, 2022). "Top Trump lawyers briefed in detail on alternate elector plot on Dec. 13, 2020". Politico.
External links
- diGenova & Toensing Archived December 9, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
- Appearances on C-SPAN