Former Republican Congressman Trey Gowdy cannot join President Trump’s legal team until early next year, the president announced Thursday.
Speaking to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House, Trump said, “Trey Gowdy is a terrific guy. I think there’s a problem with, he can’t start for another couple of months because of lobbying rules and regulations.”
It was only a day after Jay Sekulow, counsel to the president, announced Gowdy had joined the team to assist with the response to the House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry.
“I am pleased to announce that former Congressman Trey Gowdy is joining our team as Counsel to the President. I have known Trey for years and worked with him when he served in Congress. His legal skills and his advocacy will serve the President well. Trey’s command of the law is well known and his service on Capitol Hill will be a great asset as a member of our team,” Sekulow said.
Gowdy, 55, is a former federal prosecutor who retired from Congress on Jan. 3 after representing the 4th Congressional District of South Carolina for four terms. He then rejoined his old white-collar law firm, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough.
Despite his return to the legal profession, federal law prevents Gowdy from taking on Trump as a client in the impeachment fight until Jan. 3, 2020.
“Sekulow’s language is misleading. Gowdy is not Counsel to the President. He’s attorney for Donald Trump. As such, he’s subject to the criminal prohibition on communicating with Congress on behalf of Trump with intent to influence action by a member of Congress until Jan. 3, 2020,” Walter Shaub, former U.S. Office of Government Ethics director, tweeted in reaction to Sekulow’s announcement.
Maggie Haberman, the White House correspondent for the New York Times, offered some insight into what happened behind the scenes. “Someone in West Wing badly wanted a win internally and put out Gowdy before it was a done deal. So it was quickly done yesterday and then had to be undone,” Haberman tweeted, before adding, “Undone by the president in his comments today, that is.”
In addition to the move to join Trump’s legal team, Gowdy was dropped as a Fox News contributor, a network representative announced Wednesday.
Gowdy had used the platform to critique the Democrats’ efforts to impeach Trump. He has been particularly critical of House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, who is leading the impeachment effort.
Gowdy slammed the California Democrat for his false characterization of the July 25 phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his possible knowledge of the whistleblower before a complaint was filed. In a Fox News appearance last week, Gowdy suggested that Schiff should be called as a “fact witness” for his potential prior knowledge of the call.
