Courts & Litigation Executive Branch

Lawfare Daily: Bribery and the Second Trump Administration with John Keller

James Pearce, John Keller, Jen Patja
Friday, July 11, 2025, 5:00 AM
Analyzing whether bribery has occurred during the first six months of the second Trump administration
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John Keller, now a partner at Walden, Macht, Haran, & Williams, channeled his experience as the former chief of the Public Integrity Section at the Department of Justice to talk about bribery with James Pearce, Lawfare Legal Fellow. After explaining the basics of bribery law and whether a current or former president could face a bribery prosecution, Keller analyzed whether three episodes from the first six months of the second Trump administration could plausibly be characterized as bribery: Paramount’s $16 million settlement of Trump’s lawsuit while Paramount awaits federal approval of a merger, law firms agreeing to provide pro bono legal services to causes favored by the administration to rescind or avoid targeted executive orders, and the dismissal of the criminal indictment against New York City Mayor Eric Adams in exchange for Adams’s agreeing to further the administration’s immigration agenda.

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James Pearce

James Pearce

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James Pearce worked at the Department of Justice for over a decade until January 2025. In the Criminal Division at Main Justice, he worked in the Appellate Section and in the Public Integrity Section. He served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Offices in Maryland (Greenbelt) and in the District of Columbia. He also worked for Special Counsel Jack Smith.
John Keller

John Keller

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John Keller is a partner at Walden, Macht, Haran, & Williams and was formerly the Chief of the Public Integrity Section at the Department of Justice.
Jen Patja

Jen Patja

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Jen Patja is the editor of the Lawfare Podcast and Rational Security, and serves as Lawfare’s Director of Audience Engagement. Previously, she was Co-Executive Director of Virginia Civics and Deputy Director of the Center for the Constitution at James Madison's Montpelier, where she worked to deepen public understanding of constitutional democracy and inspire meaningful civic participation.
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