Donald Trump Hires Todd Blanche, Former Federal Prosecutor, as Lead Counsel for Criminal Indictment
Donald Trump has enlisted Todd Blanche, a former federal prosecutor, and a top white-collar criminal defense lawyer, to serve as his lead counsel in the criminal indictment brought against him by the Manhattan district attorney. Blanche, previously a partner at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, resigned from the firm to take on this role, stating in an email obtained by POLITICO that he believes it is the best course of action and an opportunity he cannot afford to miss.
On Monday, Blanche declined to provide any comments. Meanwhile, Trump has engaged the services of Susan Necheles and Joe Tacopina, who had previously represented him during the investigation that led to the indictment. Blanche, a former assistant U.S. attorney in the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office, has a track record of representing high-profile clients, including Trump ally Paul Manafort and Igor Fruman, a former associate of Rudy Giuliani, who pleaded guilty in a campaign finance case brought by the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office.
Blanche's Successful Representation of Paul Manafort Caught Trump's Attention
Notably, Blanche’s successful representation of Manafort in getting mortgage fraud and other charges brought by the Manhattan district attorney’s office dropped, arguing that they would constitute double jeopardy since the state charges overlapped with the conduct for which Manafort had already been federally tried, may have caught Trump's attention.
The previous Manhattan district attorney, Cy Vance, a Democrat, had charged Manafort. During that time, Blanche publicly criticized the indictment of Manafort, calling it "politically motivated," a sentiment that Trump also shared about the current district attorney, Alvin Bragg, a Democrat.
Blanche Resigns from Cadwalader to Take on Trump's Case
Blanche stated in his resignation email that he could not continue representing Trump while being a partner at Cadwalader, one of New York City's oldest and most prestigious law firms. He stated, "Doing this as a partner at Cadwalader was not an option, so I have had to make the difficult choice to leave the firm." A spokesperson for Cadwalader did not respond to requests for comments.
Trump has added Blanche to his legal team as he prepares to surrender on Tuesday to the district attorney's office on charges related to his alleged involvement in a scheme to reimburse his former lawyer for a hush money payment made to Stormy Daniels, a porn star, during the 2016 presidential campaign. He is expected to appear in court on Tuesday afternoon for arraignment.
