Washington Wrap is a weekly roundup of Big Law hires and other Washington, D.C., legal industry news. Read the previous edition here. Send tips and lateral moves to Katelyn Polantz at [email protected].

D.C.’s humidity index this week went from sweltering to spontaneous combustion. So did developments in the legal industry, especially related to the Trump-Russia investigations. Let’s sweat through the most notable moments:

  • If you haven’t read the full transcript of President Donald Trump’s interview with The New York Times, it is worth your time. Among many things, Trump expressed displeasure that U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the Russia investigation. Sessions said he will continue to serve as attorney general “as long as that is appropriate.” Morale appears to be low in the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice building.
  • Trump, and later his personal attorney John Dowd, attempted to draw parameters around Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, saying it should not touch on the president’s finances and business deals. Here’s Dowd’s statement to Bloomberg News on Thursday: “Those transactions are in my view well beyond the mandate of the special counsel; are unrelated to the election of 2016 or any alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia and most importantly, are well beyond any statute of limitation imposed by the United States code.”
  • For the record, Mueller’s brief from the Justice Department allows him to investigate “any matters that arose or may arise” related to potential Russian collusion. The word “any” indicates quite the broad platform for the investigation, especially since Mueller has all the same abilities as any U.S. attorney and more. Bloomberg’s report says financial questions are squarely in the frame of the investigation now. 
  • Trump’s legal team is preparing to hit back with other tactics, by attempting to exploit the idea that Mueller has conflicts of interest, or use the president’s pardoning power, according to The Washington Post.
  • As one lawyer who’s watching the investigation told me last week, “It’s about to get really aggressive,” and we shouldn’t be shocked when legal strategies turns toward calling Mueller “a lying stinking dog.” As another lawyer put, we’re starting to see who has “swamp skills.”
  • The Senate Judiciary Committee directly asked FBI director nominee Christopher Wray about investigating the Trumps on foreign corruption. In a reminder that Mueller’s is not the only federal team with investigative powers, Wray said he could and would if merited.
  • The probe is expanding to companies, putting Deutsche Bank in need of lawyers. The bank “will soon be receiving subpoenas” because of its banking for the Trump family, according to Bloomberg News. The bank is using Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld lawyers Leslie Kiernan and Steve Ross for its response to congressional inquiries regarding its Trump ties. It’s not yet clear who may represent the bank on the Justice Department aspect or in a related New York state inquiry.
  • The reactions from prominent attorneys to the president’s words this week are more astonishing by the minute. Former White House counsel Bob Bauer critiqued the president on the Lawfare blog Thursday, writing that Trump’s lawyers “just fail time and again” in controlling their client’s public statements. Twitter is another prime venue for outrage. Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. last night re-upped his message of support to career staff at the Justice Department and FBI, while former Solicitor General Walter Dellinger is suggesting a D.C.-lawyer protest march through Washington if Mueller is fired.
  • Friday morning brought news of a reshuffling on the president’s legal and public relations teams. Trump’s personal lawyer Marc Kasowitz is either “out,” according to CBS News, or “will see his role recede,” according to CNN, following a week of brutal press attention. Dowd is now the point person. Mark Corallo, who served as the spokesman for the legal team led by Kasowitz, appears to have resigned, as has White House press secretary Sean Spicer.
  • Jared Kushner will testify in a closed Senate intelligence committee hearing on Monday. Donald Trump Jr., Paul Manafort and others are scheduled to appear publicly before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.