Trump targets lawyers in immigration cases, lawsuits against administration

In a memorandum to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi late on Friday, Trump said lawyers were helping to fuel «rampant fraud and meritless claims» in the immigration system, and directed the Justice Department to seek sanctions against attorneys for professional misconduct.

The order also took aim at law firms that sue the administration in what Trump, a Republican, called «baseless partisan» lawsuits. He asked Bondi to refer such firms to the White House to be stripped of security clearances, and for federal contracts they worked on to be terminated.

Ben Wizner, a senior lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union, said the new directive sought to «chill and intimidate» lawyers who challenge the president's agenda. Trump has separately mounted attacks on law firms over their internal diversity policies and their ties to his political adversaries. «Courts have been the only institution so far that have stood up to Trump's onslaught,» Wizner said. «Courts can't play that role without lawyers bringing cases in front of them.»

The ACLU is involved in litigation against the administration over immigrant deportations, including the expulsion of alleged Venezuelan gang members.

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The Trump administration has been hit with more than 100 lawsuits challenging White House actions on immigration, transgender rights and other issues since the start of the president's second term. Legal advocacy groups, along with at least 12 major law firms, have brought many of the cases.

A White House spokesperson, Taylor Rogers, said «President Trump is delivering on his promise to ensure the judicial system is no longer weaponized against the American people.»

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to requests for