Well, not quite as expected. Giuliani gets fired by his current law firm, Greenberg Traurig, before Trump has a chance to do it.
Giuliani’s Law Firm Undercuts His Statements as They Part Ways
By Michael S. Schmidt and Maggie Haberman, The New York Times
May 10, 2018
President Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, abruptly resigned from his law firm, Greenberg Traurig, the firm announced on Thursday, then promptly undercut his recent statements defending the president.
Mr. Giuliani had taken a leave of absence last month from the firm, one of the nation’s largest, to represent Mr. Trump. But the firm said in a statement that he no longer worked there.
Firm partners had chafed over Mr. Giuliani’s public comments about payments that another of Mr. Trump’s lawyers, Michael D. Cohen, made to secure the silence of a pornographic film actress who said she had an affair with Mr. Trump. The president has denied her allegations.
Mr. Giuliani suggested that such payments were common at his firm, even without the knowledge of the clients. “That was money that was paid by his lawyer, the way I would do, out of his law firm funds,” he said on Fox News. He added, “Michael would take care of things like this like I take care of this with my clients.”
The New York Times asked Greenberg Traurig about those remarks early this week. Shortly after Mr. Giuliani’s resignation was announced, the firm responded.
“We cannot speak for Mr. Giuliani with respect to what was intended by his remarks,” said a spokeswoman, Jill Perry. “Speaking for ourselves, we would not condone payments of the nature alleged to have been made or otherwise without the knowledge and direction of a client.”
Mr. Trump has publicly denied knowing about the payments as they were made. Mr. Giuliani said the president reimbursed Mr. Cohen for them, an arrangement he said was routine. Mr. Giuliani had to walk back many of his comments.
Mr. Giuliani laughed when read the statement from the firm. “First of all, I don’t think they really understand what I said,” he said. He said he was referring to a non-disclosure agreement that Mr. Cohen had negotiated. “That’s a very common part of a settlement,” he said. “In fact, any lawyer would negotiated that for a client.”
“You’ve gotta realize the firm is 2,000 lawyers,” he added, “some of them big supporters of the president, some of them enemies of the president.”
In the statement, Greenberg Traurig said that Mr. Giuliani had resigned effective Wednesday. “After recognizing that this work is all consuming and is lasting longer than initially anticipated, Rudy has determined it is best for him to resign,” said the firm’s chairman, Richard A. Rosenbaum.
Mr. Giuliani said in the statement that it “is in everyone’s best interest that I make it a permanent resignation” so he can focus on the special counsel’s investigation.
Giuliani’s law firm throws him under the bus, says his Stormy Daniels story makes no sense
by Aaron Rupar, Think Progress
May 10, 2018
“Michael would take care of things like this, like I take care of things like this for my clients,” Giuliani told Sean Hannity last Wednesday, referring to the $130,000 hush payment Cohen made to Stormy Daniels just before the 2016 election on Trump’s behalf. “I don’t burden them with every single thing that comes along. These are busy people.”
Despite what Giuliani would have you believe, lawyers do not in fact regularly make hush payments on behalf of their clients without their knowledge. And in a statement released Thursday, Giuliani’s law firm sought to make that clear.
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Greenberg Traurig’s public rebuke of Giuliani came shortly after the firm abruptly announced his permanent resignation. The firm claims Giuliani decided to resign because his work for Trump “is all consuming and is lasting longer than initially anticipated.” But Giuliani’s hiring as Trump’s lawyer was announced on April 19 — a mere three weeks ago — and Perry’s statement suggests Greenberg Traurig higher-ups aren’t happy with how Giuliani’s comments reflect on how they practice law.Giuliani’s Hannity interview also created problems for Trump. Though the president said in April that he knew nothing about the Daniels payment, Giuliani claimed Trump actually reimbursed Cohen for it in increments throughout 2017. Asked to clarify the discrepancy last Friday morning, Trump instead threw Giuliani under the bus, pointing out that he “started yesterday” and “will get his facts straight.”
“Virtually everything that’s been said has been said incorrectly,” the president added.
Fast forward a week, and team Trump still hasn’t clarified the timeline about what Trump knew and when. The president says his lawyer’s story about the Daniels payment was incorrect, but he hasn’t bothered to offer an alternative explanation.