Trump DOJ Official Faces Ethics Charge Over Bid to Overturn 2020 Election Results

(Bloomberg) -- Former US Justice Department attorney Jeffrey Clark was accused of ethics violations by the Washington D.C. bar association for his role in Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election results.

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Clark, an assistant attorney general at the time, wrote a “proof of concept” letter falsely alleging election fraud in several states and outlining a strategy to get state legislatures to send unauthorized electors to Congress to disrupt certification of the vote, according to a document filed by the D.C. bar’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel on Tuesday with the court of appeals.

The draft letter was addressed to the governor of Georgia and top federal lawmakers. Clark repeatedly tried to get Richard Donoghue, then principal associate deputy attorney general, and Jeffrey Rosen, then acting attorney general, to sign and send the letter, according to the bar. Donoghue and Rosen refused.

The bar accused Clark of violating the District of Columbia Rules of Professional Conduct, which prohibit lawyers from engaging in dishonest or deceitful conduct and in conduct that obstructs justice. The charges come after federal investigators searched Clark’s home last month and his actions were featured by the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

Clark couldn’t be reached for comment, but a spokesperson for the Center for Renewing American, where Clark is a senior fellow, issued a statement on his behalf.

“This is the latest attack on the legal qualifications of one of the only lawyers at the DOJ who had the interests of the American people at heart,” the CRA’s Rachel Semmel said in an email. “Jeff Clark is an American hero and the media sure seems to enjoy being the press secretary for the J6 committee.”

Read More: ‘Pure Insanity’: Trump Election Fraud Pursuit Detailed by Panel

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