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<a href="http://churchandstate.org.uk/2019/03/opus-deis-influence-on-the-u-s-judiciary/">http://churchandstate.org.uk/2019/03/opus-deis-influence-on-the-u-s-judiciary/</a>
"l<a href="https://www.politico.com/interactives/2018/politico50/leonard-leo/">eonard Leo can take credit for installing four Supreme Court justices</a>”

– John Roberts, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. “As

executive vice president of the Federalist Society, Leo has been the

quiet architect of a pivotal shift to the right throughout the federal

judiciary” including “dozens of lower court federal judges across the

country.”It was <a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/06/28/624416666/what-is-the-federalist-society-and-how-does-it-affect-supreme-court-picks">Leo who prepared Trump’s “list of judges</a> and the people that he’s put on the bench.”Leo is on the <a href="http://www.cicdc.org/about/staff-and-board-of-directors/">board of directors of Opus Dei’s Catholic Information Center</a>

located at 15th and K Street, two blocks from the White House. The

Center is “a rallying point for ultra-conservative Catholics eager for a

voice in t<a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/may-2006-church-state/featured/breaking-the-opus-dei-code">he secular halls of government power</a>” and “advances a hard-right political agenda,” according to Church and State, Americans United for Separation of Church and State’s magazine.Other members of the Catholic Information Center’s Board of Directors include:<ul><li style="margin-bottom:16px;">Pat Cipollone – Trump’s <a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2018/10/13/cipollone-mcgahn-white-house-counsel-898700">White House counsel</a>, the president’s principal legal adviser. Cipollone is a partner in Stein Mitchell Cipollone Beato and Missner LLP.</li><li style="margin-bottom:16px;">Gerry

Mitchell – another partner in Stein Mitchell Cipollone Beato and

Missner. Their attorneys have “unparalleled expertise” in the <a href="https://www.steinmitchell.com/">federal courts</a> and “before the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice” according to the firm’s website.</li><li style="margin-bottom:16px;">Brian Svoboda – partner in Perkins Coie. The firm’s “Areas of Focus” include “Political Parties, Campaigns and Committees; <a href="https://www.perkinscoie.com/en/professionals/brian-svoboda/news.html">Corporate Political Activity</a>

and Campaign Finance Compliance.” Its attorneys are admitted to the

“Bar and Court” of the “District of Columbia, U.S. Court of Appeals for

the District of Columbia Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth

Circuit and U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.”</li><li style="margin-bottom:16px;">Thomas Yannucci – partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, Brett <a href="https://freebeacon.com/politics/kavanaugh-garners-support-among-many-colleagues-former-law-firm/">Kavanaugh’s former law firm</a>. Yannuci “has acted as trial and appellate counsel” in suits involving “the DOJ, FDA, EPA, FTC, SEC, ITC, FEC, CIA, NLRB” and <a href="https://www.kirkland.com/sitecontent.cfm?contentID=220&itemID=8058">RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act)</a>.</li><li style="margin-bottom:16px;">Cindy Searcy – another vice president of the <a href="https://fedsoc.org/staff/cynthia-searcy">Federalist Society</a>. The Federalist Society is a “<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/06/28/624416666/what-is-the-federalist-society-and-how-does-it-affect-supreme-court-picks">hugely powerful</a>, nationwide organization of conservative lawyers” instrumental in developing candidates for federal judicial roles.</li></ul>Opus DeiOpus Dei is a secret society and an <a href="https://opusdei.org/en-us/section/organization/">official arm</a> of the Catholic Church. Its roots are in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/oct/05/spain.gilestremlett">fascist Spain</a>.In

1982, Pope John Paul II designated the group as a “personal prelature,”

that is, they are under the sole jurisdiction of the pope and no other

prelate. Its website states, “Opus Dei’s <a href="https://opusdei.org/en-us/faq/#what-is-opus-dei">mission</a>

is to spread the Christian message that every person is called to

holiness and that every honest work can be sanctified.” As of 2017 there

are <a href="http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dqod0.html">92,892 lay members</a> and 2,212 priests worldwide.<a href="https://opusdei.org/en-us/section/cooperators/">Non-Catholics are welcomed</a>

as “cooperators” who “assist the educational and social undertakings

promoted by the Prelature.” Priests not ordained into Opus Dei can be a

member of the <a href="https://opusdei.org/en/article/the-priestly-society-of-the-holy-cross-what-it-is/">Priestly Society</a> of the Holy Cross, “intrinsically united to the Prelature.”Only

the identities of Opus Dei priests are public. Members of the Priestly

Society of the Holy Cross and all lay members’ and cooperators’ names

are secret unless self-disclosed, such as being openly affiliated with

the Catholic Information Center.At the top:“Opus Dei is an efficient machine run to <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=a-vGpdlGed0C&pg=PT291&lpg=PT291&dq">achieve worldly power</a>,” wrote investigative reporter Penny Lernoux in her book, People of God. “Opus

Dei pursues the Vatican’s agenda through the presence of its members in

secular governments and institutions and through a vast array of

academic, medical, and grassroots pursuits. Its constant effort [is] to <a href="http://www.population-security.org/cffc-97-01.htm">increase its presence in civil institutions of power</a>.

[T]heir work in the public sphere breaches the church-state division

that is fundamental to modern democracy,” noted Gordon Urquhart, author

of The Pope’s Armada: Unlocking the Secrets of Mysterious and Powerful New Sects in the Church (1995).“Opus

Dei uses the Catholic Church for its own ends which are money and power

…. Its members form a transnational elite. They seek to colonize the

summits of power. They work with stealth – ‘holy discretion’ – and <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/93339.Their_Kingdom_Come">practice ‘divine deception</a>,’” declared Robert Hutchison in the introduction to his book, Their Kingdom Come: Inside the Secret World of Opus Dei.“Opus Dei is mostly middle- and upper-class businessmen, <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/politics/1983/07/their-will-be-done:">professionals, military personnel and government officials</a>. Its members control a large number of banks and <a href="http://www.alertadigital.com/2013/01/08/las-escandalosas-practicas-economicas-del-opus-jovenes-vuelven-a-casa-con-deudas-que-alcanzan-los-42-000-euros/">financial institutions</a>,” according to Martin A. Lee, author and activist who has written books and articles on far-right movements.For example, <a href="http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/former-us-head-of-opus-dei-dies-at-71-66612/">Opus Dei also operates</a> the Leonine Forum, “<a href="http://www.leonineforum.org/">Cultivating Catholic Professionals</a> for Lives of Virtuous Leadership.”Among the 2017-2018 New York City Fellows are those employed in <a href="http://www.leonineforum.org/past-leonine-fellows/#classof2018nyc">Wall Street</a>

brokerages, law firms, leading publications, universities, medicine,

industry and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of N.Y.The 2017-2018 Washington D.C. Fellows include those employed in the <a href="http://www.leonineforum.org/past-leonine-fellows/#classof2018nyc">federal government</a>:

White House, State Department, the House of Representatives, U.S. Dept.

of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Dept. of Justice, Federal

Communications Commission, U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit,

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, prestigious law firms,

conservative think tanks, higher education and medicine.As an example of “<a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/01/21/highranking-members-military-part-knights-malta-opus-dei-reporter-claims/">military personnel</a>,”

veteran investigative reporter Seymour Hersh “claimed that Gen. Stanley

McChrystal, Vice Admiral William McRaven and others in the JSOC were

members of the Knights of Malta and Opus Dei.” JSOC is “the <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/jsoc-black-ops-force-took-down-bin-laden/">elite Special Ops force</a>” who

killed Osama bin Laden. “We’re gonna change mosques into cathedrals …

This is not an atypical attitude among some military — it’s a crusade,

literally,” Hersh reported. “He added that members of these societies

have developed <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/01/21/highranking-members-military-part-knights-malta-opus-dei-reporter-claims/">a secret set of insignias</a> that represent ‘the whole notion that this is a culture war’ between religions.”In government, Larry Kudlow is Trump’s director of the National Economic Council. <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/12/larry-kudlow-wealthy-dont-steal">Plutocracy is “just what America needs</a>,”

Kudlow wrote in December 2016. “Putting the incredibly wealthy in

charge of the U.S. government” is described as Kudlow’s great idea.Kudlow is one of Fr. John McCloskey’s <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/larry-kudlow-donald-trump-economic-adviser-459226">notable converts</a> to Catholicism. McCloskey was director of Catholic Information Center from 1998-2002.Another McCloskey convert is former Kansas Gov. <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/assessment/2002/08/the_rev_john_mccloskey.html">Sam Brownback</a>, now Trump’s Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom.Mick

Mulvaney will serve as Trump’s acting White House Chief of Staff,

beginning in 2019. He remains as director of Trump’s White House Office

of Management and Budget and interim head of the Consumer Financial

Protection Bureau. Mulvaney “has reportedly met with a long list of

lobbyists, corporate executives and wealthy people with business

interests before the government.” His meeting with Opus Dei’s Jeff

Bell, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/jeffrey-bell-gop-senate-candidate-and-architect-of-reaganomics-dies-at-74/2018/02/22/164725a4-173c-11e8-92c9-376b4fe57ff7_story.html">architect of Reaganomics</a>, covered “<a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/whos-dropping-in-on-trump-budget-czar-mick-mulvaney">religious and political matters.</a>”Trump appointed C-Fam (formerly known as the Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute), the “<a href="http://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/trump-names-c-fam-heritage-to-us-delegation-to-un-commission-on-status-of-women/">intensely anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ group</a>” headed by <a href="http://experienceswithopusdei.blogspot.com/2009/09/experience-of-recruitment-in-opus-dei.html%20">Opus Dei</a>’s Austin Ruse, to the U.S. delegation to the UN Commission on the Status of Women.As to members who “control a large number of banks and financial institutions,” <a href="https://opentabernacle.wordpress.com/2014/04/05/pope-francis-increases-opus-dei-power/">Pope Francis has appointed</a> many of them to the Vatican.Secrecy prevents certaintyDue to <a href="http://www.opuslibros.org/html/TIME_Opus_Dei_story.htm">Opus Dei’s secrecy</a>, we can only guess about non-disclosed membership. Some have done so anyway.“It’s widely known that <a href="http://www.catholica.com.au/gc2/occ2/086_occ2_100212.php">Supreme Court Justices</a> Antonin

Scalia, Samuel Alito, and Clarence Thomas belong to Opus Dei – and that

Chief Justice John Roberts may also be a member,” stated Matthew Fox, a

former priest, progressive theologian and author of more than 23 books.Others have also identified <a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/if-justice-scalia-really-had-his-way/">Scalia as a member</a>, perhaps because his wife attended Catholic Information Center events and his son has spoken there.<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/06/28/624416666/what-is-the-federalist-society-and-how-does-it-affect-supreme-court-picks">Scalia’s influence</a>,

however, is not in doubt. The Federal Society “really grew up as a

organization that promoted Antonin Scalia’s conservative judicial

philosophy.” On Nov. 10, Trump awarded Scalia the <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-miriam-adelson-scalia-hatch-hamedal-of-freedom_us_5be6f31ce4b0769d24cdc524">Presidential Medal of Freedom</a>, the highest civilian award in the U.S., for his “especially meritorious contribution” to this country.<a href="https://www.au.org/church-state/may-2006-church-state/featured/breaking-the-opus-dei-code">Alito</a> has been also been described as to close to Opus Dei by Church and State Magazine.Some are linked by association. “Leo has been a longtime friend and champion of Justice <a href="http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-leo-court-search-20180706-story.html">Clarence Thomas</a>.”When <a href="https://www.beliefnet.com/news/2005/08/john-roberts-catholic-connections.aspx#x3vu1dUAEdzu4WDS.99">John Roberts</a>

was nominated for the Court, Opus Dei’s Austin Ruse said his fellow

conservative Catholics could “breathe easy” and Leonard Leo “also

assured conservative Catholics that Roberts will not follow the same

path as Anthony Kennedy.”“Leo, perhaps the most integral private individual in the selection of <a href="https://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/news/release/whitehouse-presses-grassley-for-kavanaugh-documents-on-leonard-leo-and-federalist-society_Leo">Kavanaugh</a>” was <a href="https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2018/07/10/catholics-dont-see-sweeping-change-with-trumps-scotus-pick/">present</a> at the White House ceremony when Trump announced Kavanaugh’s nomination. Kavanaugh’s legal thinking is “<a href="https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2018/07/10/catholics-dont-see-sweeping-change-with-trumps-scotus-pick/">shaped by Scalia</a>.”Gorsuch, was raised Catholic, went to the same <a href="https://www.washingtonian.com/2018/07/09/brett-kavanaugh-neil-gorsuch-georgetown-prep/">elite Catholic prep school</a> as

Kavanaugh, but is now Episcopalian. He did his doctoral study on

“natural law,” a theory asserting that certain rights are inherent by

virtue of human nature that can be understood universally through human

reason, first taught by the Catholic monk, St. Thomas Aquinas. On Oct.

19, Gorsuch spoke “at a conference of Catholic legal scholars <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/justice-neil-gorsuchs-speech-to-catholic-group-closed-to-the-media-1539885310">seeking to expand Christian influence on public policy</a>” which was closed to the public.During his time at the U.S. Court of Appeals Tenth Circuit, Gorsuch took a “strong stance” for “religious freedom” in the <a href="https://concernedwomen.org/gorsuch-in-little-sisters-of-the-poor/">Little Sisters of the Poor</a> case. He also concurred in the <a href="https://concernedwomen.org/gorsuch-in-hobby-lobby/">Hobby Lobby</a> case in favor of the Green family.Pope

Francis met with the Little Sisters of the Poor while in the U.S. in

support of their lawsuit. The year before, the pope granted a private

audience to <a href="http://religionnews.com/2014/03/31/hobby-lobbys-green-family-meets-pope-francis/">Hobby Lobby</a>’s

Green family, asking them “how their Supreme Court fight against

President Obama’s contraception mandate was progressing.” They won.The

nuns’ lawsuit was against the Obamacare provision that those seeking

the same religious exemption to providing contraceptive health care

coverage to their employees as “houses of worship” must fill out a

two-page form explaining why. The nuns’ argued that <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/college/2016/04/18/the-zubik-v-burwell-case-explained/37415905/">filling out the forms “makes them complicit</a> in providing women with contraception.”This became a cause célèbre for conservative Catholics and may well have tipped the Electoral College total in favor of Trump.In September 2016, Trump promised that “If I am elected president, [t]he <a href="https://www.donaldjtrump.com/press-releases/issues-of-importance-to-catholics">Little Sisters of the Poor</a>,

or any religious order for that matter, will always have their

‘religious liberty’ protected on my watch and will not have to face

bullying from the government because of their religious beliefs.”In

October, Trump sent a letter to the Catholic Leadership Conference: “I

will make absolutely certain religious orders like the <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/pdf/DJT_catholic_leadership_conference_letter.pdf">Little Sisters of Poor are not bullied</a> by the federal government because of their religious beliefs.”In the final days of the campaign, Trump gave an interview on the Catholic EWTN, “the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EWTN">largest religious media network </a>in

the world.” Trump again sympathized with the Little Sisters of the

Poor. “Religious liberty” was in “tremendous trouble” and “the biggest

issue right now is the <a href="http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/heres-the-full-text-of-donald-trumps-interview-with-ewtn-98883/">Supreme Court judges</a>,” he said.Trump

won all the rural and Southern Evangelical-majority states, as

expected. But, “his victory in the Electoral College came down to a

razor-thin edge of only 77,744 votes across <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/07/robert-jones-white-christian-america/532587/">three states:</a> Pennsylvania

(44,292 votes), Wisconsin (22,748 votes), and Michigan (10,704 votes).

These votes represent a Trump margin of 0.7 percentage points in

Pennsylvania, 0.7 percentage points in Wisconsin, and 0.2 percentage

points in Michigan.”There are more Catholics than Evangelicals in <a href="http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/state/pennsylvania/">Pennsylvania</a> and <a href="http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/state/wisconsin/">Wisconsin</a>. While there are more Evangelicals in <a href="http://www.pewforum.org/religious-landscape-study/state/michigan/">Michigan</a> than Catholics (25% v 18%), the Evangelical vote alone wasn’t sufficient to give Trump a win.Trump won<a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/11/09/how-the-faithful-voted-a-preliminary-2016-analysis/"> 60%</a> of

white Catholics while receiving only 46% of the national popular vote.

As public opinion seesawed during 2016 campaign, every poll that

included the respondent’s religion showed Catholics choosing Trump at

percentages <a href="http://www.investors.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/IBD_TIPP_PresidentialElectionPoll_110216.pdf">higher</a> than the general electorate. (See also <a href="http://www.prri.org/research/prri-brookings-october-19-2016-presidential-election-horserace-clinton-trump/">here</a>, <a href="http://www.prri.org/research/lgbt-2016-presidential-election/">here</a> and <a href="http://www.pewforum.org/2016/07/13/evangelicals-rally-to-trump-religious-nones-back-clinton/pf_16-07-13_religionpolitics_whiteevang640px/">here</a>.)“Both white and Latino Catholics cast <a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/11/09/how-the-faithful-voted-a-preliminary-2016-analysis/">more ballots for Trump</a> than

for Romney in 2012.” Evangelicals “went overwhelmingly for Trump, but

that was also true in 2012 when they weren’t even sure Romney was

Christian. They aren’t the <a href="http://nypost.com/2016/12/19/catholic-surprise-another-way-trump-is-remaking-the-gop/">swing voters</a>. Catholics, on the other hand, were plus-2 for Obama in 2012 and plus-7 for Trump.”Now the Justice Department, tooLast week, Trump nominated William Barr as Attorney General. Described as a “<a href="http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/president-trump-nominates-william-barr-as-attorney-general">committed Catholic</a>,” Barr was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trump-confirms-he-will-pick-william-barr-as-his-next-attorney-general/2018/12/07/6e8d28ba-fa2d-11e8-863c-9e2f864d47e7_story.html?utm_term=.fee7151f4a80">“highly recommended” for the position by Leonard Leo</a>. As a former U.S. attorney general, Barr “will enter the Justice Department with an awful lot of <a href="http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/president-trump-nominates-william-barr-as-attorney-general">credibility and respect</a> for the role he previously played,” Leo said.Trump’s choice of Barr has been widely criticized.<blockquote>

Barr has publicly defended Trump on several of his pet issues. He

endorsed the firing of James Comey, called for investigation of the

Clinton Foundation, impugned the neutrality of Robert Mueller’s

investigators, and defended Trump’s practice of demanding investigations

of his enemies. Barr has a record as one of the members of the

Republican legal Establishment most indulgent of Trump’s conspiratorial

mafia ethos.But a new report in the Wall Street Journal suggests more complete answer. Earlier this year, Barr wrote a lengthy memo <a href="http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/12/trump-william-barr-memo-mueller-obstruction-justice.html">excoriating Mueller’s investigation</a>

of Trump for obstruction of justice. Mueller’s investigation was

“grossly irresponsible,” had “potentially disastrous implications,” and

other choice descriptions spread over 20 pages culled from public

reports. This memo was completely unsolicited.</blockquote>It was reported on Oct. 18 that for the first time ever, the <a href="https://www.winknews.com/2018/10/18/feds-subpoena-new-york-diocese-as-investigation-into-clergy-sex-abuse-expands/">U.S. Department of Justice </a>opened

an investigation into clerical sex abuse of minors. Seven of the eight

Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania received subpoenas and the U.S.

attorney in Buffalo, NY, also served the diocese there. Until now, <a href="http://www.snapnetwork.org/california_ag_nov18">only state officials</a> have conducted such probes. Washington D.C. and 19 states have also begun new investigations.The

U.S. Attorney’s Office in Philadelphia “issued subpoenas that seek

years of internal records, including any evidence of Church personnel

taking children across state lines for purposes of sexual abuse, any

evidence of personnel sending sexual material about children

electronically and any evidence that Church officials reassigned

suspected predators or used Church resources to further or conceal such

conduct. Any of these could be the underlying crimes for <a href="https://rewire.news/religion-dispatches/2018/10/22/is-this-the-reckoning-for-the-catholic-church-on-sexual-abuse/">RICO</a>,” the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act originally designed to target the Mafia.As journalist Patricia Miller noted, any federal investigation “could be <a href="https://rewire.news/religion-dispatches/2018/10/22/is-this-the-reckoning-for-the-catholic-church-on-sexual-abuse/">impeded by higher-ups in the Justice Department</a>.”So

with five Supreme Court justices, the Attorney General, and who knows

how many other officials installed by Leonard Leo, we have much to worry

about.Reprinted with permission from the author.Betty Clermont is author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Neo-Catholics-Implementing-Christian-Nationalism/dp/0932863639">The Neo-Catholics: Implementing Christian Nationalism in America</a> (Clarity Press, 2009).===wiki 7 22
pasquale Anthony "Pat" Cipollone<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-1">[1]</a> (born May 6, 1966)<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-HABERMAN2020-2">[2]</a> is an American attorney who served as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House_Counsel" title="White House Counsel">White House Counsel</a> for President <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump" title="Donald Trump">Donald Trump</a>.

<div id="toc" class="toc" role="navigation" aria-labelledby="mw-toc-heading"><input type="checkbox" role="button" id="toctogglecheckbox" class="toctogglecheckbox" style="display:none" /><div class="toctitle" dir="ltr" lang="en"><h2 id="mw-toc-heading">Contents</h2><label class="toctogglelabel" for="toctogglecheckbox" /></div>

<ul><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#Early_life">1 Early life</a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-2"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#Legal_career">2 Legal career</a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-3"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#White_House_Counsel">3 White House Counsel</a>

<ul><li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-4"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#Objections_to_Trump's_claims_of_2020_election_fraud">3.1 Objections to Trump's claims of 2020 election fraud</a></li><li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-5"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#January_6_committee_hearings">3.2 January 6 committee hearings</a></li></ul>

</li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-6"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#Personal_life">4 Personal life</a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-7"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#See_also">5 See also</a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-8"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#References">6 References</a></li><li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-9"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#External_links">7 External links</a></li></ul>

</div>

<h2>Early life</h2>Cipollone's

father was an Italian immigrant and factory worker; his mother was a

homemaker. He spent most of his childhood in the Bronx.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-Williamson-3">[3]</a> The family moved to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Kentucky" title="Northern Kentucky">Northern Kentucky</a>, where he graduated from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Covington_Catholic_High_School" title="Covington Catholic High School">Covington Catholic High School</a> in 1984.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-4">[4]</a> He graduated as class <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valedictorian" title="Valedictorian">valedictorian</a> from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fordham_University" title="Fordham University">Fordham University</a> in 1988, with a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bachelor_of_Arts" title="Bachelor of Arts">Bachelor of Arts</a> in economics and political philosophy.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-Williamson-3">[3]</a> He attended the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Chicago_Law_School" title="University of Chicago Law School">University of Chicago Law School</a>, where he was managing editor of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Chicago_Law_Review" title="University of Chicago Law Review">University of Chicago Law Review</a>, earning a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juris_Doctor" title="Juris Doctor">Juris Doctor</a> in 1991.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-5">[5]</a>

<h2>Legal career</h2>Cipollone was a law clerk for Judge <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Boggs" class="mw-redirect" title="Danny Boggs">Danny Boggs</a> of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Sixth_Circuit" title="United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit">United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit</a> from 1991–1992, and served as an assistant to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Attorney_General" title="United States Attorney General">Attorney General</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_P._Barr" class="mw-redirect" title="William P. Barr">William P. Barr</a> from 1992–1993.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-6">[6]</a>

He was a partner at the law firm <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirkland_%26_Ellis" title="Kirkland & Ellis">Kirkland & Ellis</a>,

and prior to taking over as White House Counsel was a partner at Stein,

Mitchell, Cipollone, Beato & Missner, where he practiced commercial

litigation.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-7">[7]</a> His clients included President Donald Trump, Radio Ingraham LLC, and Sony Entertainment.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-NLJ-8">[8]</a>

As of July 2022, Cipollone was a name partner of the Los Angeles

law firm Ellis George Cipollone O'Brien Annaguey LLP d/b/a Ellis George

Cipollone.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-9">[9]</a>

Cipollone's financial disclosure reported an income of $6.7 million in 2017–2018.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-NLJ-8">[8]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-10">[10]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-11">[11]</a>

...cipollone was named <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House_Counsel" title="White House Counsel">White House Counsel</a> by President <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump" title="Donald Trump">Donald Trump</a> in October 2018.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-12">[12]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-13">[13]</a> He succeeded <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_McGahn" title="Don McGahn">Don McGahn</a> who left office on October 17, 2018.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-14">[14]</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmet_Flood" title="Emmet Flood">Emmet Flood</a> served as counsel until Cipollone's background security check was completed.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-15">[15]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-16">[16]</a> Cipollone officially assumed the role on December 10, 2018.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-17">[17]</a>

In his role as White House Counsel, Cipollone was the public face of the White House response to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impeachment_inquiry_into_Donald_Trump" class="mw-redirect" title="Impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump">impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump</a>.

In October 2019, he signed an eight-page letter to Democratic House

leaders stating that the White House would not cooperate in any way with

the inquiry. He laid out a broad view of executive authority and said

that Democrats' actions violate "the Constitution, the rule of law, and

every past precedent".<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-18">[18]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-Williamson-3">[3]</a> This letter has been cited as evidence for the charge that President Trump was obstructing the House's impeachment inquiry.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-19">[19]</a> In December 2019, Cipollone wrote two letters in response to an invitation from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Nadler" title="Jerry Nadler">Jerry Nadler</a>, chair of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_Judiciary_Committee" class="mw-redirect" title="House Judiciary Committee">House Judiciary Committee</a>,

for the White House or Trump himself to participate in its hearings. He

said the White House and Trump would not participate because the

planned hearings do not "provide the president with any semblance of a

fair process" and the inquiry is "completely baseless".<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-20">[20]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-21">[21]</a>

On January 14, 2020, Cipollone was named to the team of attorneys representing President <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump" title="Donald Trump">Donald Trump</a> in the impeachment hearing case.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-22">[22]</a>

During the Senate's impeachment trial, Cipollone misled Congress on a

number of issues, including falsely claiming Republican congressional

members were not allowed into the secure facility where classified

information about the impeachment inquiry was being stored.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-23">[23]</a>

On January 31, 2020, it was reported that Cipollone was present

at a May 2019 White House meeting where President Trump directed his

national security adviser John Bolton to "extract damaging information

on Democrats from Ukrainian officials."<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-24">[24]</a>

<h3>Objections to Trump's claims of 2020 election fraud</h3>In

January 2021, Cipollone was present at a White House meeting where he

reportedly argued against a proposal to replace acting attorney general <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_A._Rosen" title="Jeffrey A. Rosen">Jeffrey A. Rosen</a> with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Clark" title="Jeffrey Clark">Jeffrey Clark</a>,

the acting head of the Justice Department's Civil Division. Clark,

unlike Rosen, was willing to pursue Trump's claims of election fraud and

help Trump <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempts_to_overturn_the_2020_United_States_presidential_election" title="Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election">overturn the 2020 election results</a>.

Specifically, Clark wanted to send a letter to Georgia state

legislators urging them to void Biden's win in their state, and

Cipollone strongly objected to this. One official later said, "Pat

pretty much saved Rosen's job that day."<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-25">[25]</a>

While <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempts_to_overturn_the_2020_United_States_presidential_election" title="Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election">Trump pursued schemes to stay in power</a> that led to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021_United_States_Capitol_attack" title="2021 United States Capitol attack">January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol</a>, Cipollone and members of his team threatened to resign on principle. On March 31, 2022, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jared_Kushner" title="Jared Kushner">Jared Kushner</a> told the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_House_Select_Committee_on_the_January_6_Attack" title="United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack">House select committee investigating the January 6 attack</a>

that he had been aware of Cipollone's objections but that he had

dismissed and ignored them as mere "whining". The tape of Kushner's

interview was revealed at the committee's first public hearing on June

9, 2022.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-26">[26]</a>

<h3>January 6 committee hearings</h3>Cipollone’s comments and actions during his final days as Trump's White House Counsel have played a key role in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_House_Select_Committee_on_the_January_6_Attack_public_hearings" title="United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack public hearings">January 6 committee hearings</a>, specifically the committee's sixth hearing.

On June 28, former Trump White House aide <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassidy_Hutchinson" title="Cassidy Hutchinson">Cassidy Hutchinson</a>

testified Cipollone discussed potential criminal legal exposure for

Trump's planned rally on January 6. "Pat was concerned it would look

like we were obstructing justice or obstructing the Electoral College

count," she testified, "that it would look like we were obstructing what

was happening on Capitol Hill."<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-npr.org-27">[27]</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obstructing_an_official_proceeding" title="Obstructing an official proceeding">Obstructing an official proceeding</a> is a felony under U.S. law, and as part of a dispute with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Eastman" title="John Eastman">John Eastman</a>, U.S. District Judge <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_O._Carter" title="David O. Carter">David O. Carter</a>

ruled with the committee, stating "the Court finds it more likely than

not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct the Joint

Session of Congress."<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-28">[28]</a>

"We had conversations about potentially obstructing justice or

defrauding the electoral count," Hutchinson testified about discussions

with Cipollone. Carter's ruling also cited "conspiracy to defraud the

United States," by circumventing the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electoral_Count_Act" title="Electoral Count Act">Electoral Count Act</a>.

Hutchinson testified to being present for dramatic conversations between Cipollone and White House Chief of Staff <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Meadows" title="Mark Meadows">Mark Meadows</a>

on January 6, with Hutchinson quoting Cipollone as saying "Mark,

something needs to be done or people are going to die and the blood is

going to be on your f'ing hands." Hutchinson quoted Cipollone as saying,

"Mark, we need to do something more. They're literally calling for the

vice president to be f'ing hung," with Meadows responding "you heard

[the president], Pat. He thinks <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Pence" title="Mike Pence">Mike</a> deserves it. He doesn't think they're doing anything wrong."<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-npr.org-27">[27]</a>

Committee Vice Chair <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liz_Cheney" title="Liz Cheney">Liz Cheney</a>

repeatedly called for Cipollone to testify before the committee, saying

a week before Hutchinson's testimony “our evidence shows that Pat

Cipollone and his office tried to do what was right" and spoke for the

committee stating "we think the American people deserve to hear from Mr.

Cipollone personally. He should appear before this committee."<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-29">[29]</a> Cipollone's predecessor as White House Counsel <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dean" title="John Dean">John Dean</a> called on Cipollone to follow his example and testify about Trump's potentially criminal behavior to Congress.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-30">[30]</a> Cipollone was issued a public <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subpoena" title="Subpoena">subpoena</a> to testify before the committee the day after Hutchinson's testimony.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-31">[31]</a> Cipollone complied with the subpoena, agreeing to testify to the committee in a videotaped <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deposition_(law)" title="Deposition (law)">deposition</a> on July 8.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-32">[32]</a>

<h2>Personal life</h2>Cipollone is a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Catholic" class="mw-redirect" title="Roman Catholic">Roman Catholic</a>, a founding member of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Catholic_Prayer_Breakfast" title="National Catholic Prayer Breakfast">National Catholic Prayer Breakfast</a> and a board member of the Catholic Information Center.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-33">[33]</a> Conservative commentator <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Ingraham" title="Laura Ingraham">Laura Ingraham</a> credited Cipollone with helping her convert to Catholicism in 2002.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-34">[34]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-35">[35]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-36">[36]</a> He has ten children.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-37">[37]</a> One of Cipollone’s daughters worked as a booker for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ingraham_Angle" title="The Ingraham Angle">The Ingraham Angle</a>.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Cipollone#cite_note-38">[38]</a>

<h2>See also</h2><ul><li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trump%E2%80%93Ukraine_scandal" title="Trump–Ukraine scandal">Trump–Ukraine scandal</a></li></ul>===