The Justice Department has opened an inquiry into Corey Lewandowski, President Trump’s 2016 campaign manager and, until March, the de facto chief of staff and top adviser to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, over allegations that he personally profited from his role at the department. The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal reported the inquiry on Thursday.
It begins inside the department itself. The case stems from a criminal referral by the DHS inspector general, whose office has been examining contracting practices during Noem’s tenure since March and shared its findings with the Justice Department in recent days. The focus, the Journal reports, includes possible contracting fraud and kickbacks: as a special government employee, Lewandowski or close associates signed off on nearly all DHS spending decisions over $100,000. The Journal has previously reported that he asked several Middle Eastern countries to hire him on the side, for visa and other matters, while he was in government.
The setting matters. Noem was fired in March after a Senate grilling over $220 million in DHS self-deportation advertising contracts, and Lewandowski was pushed out with her. Which U.S. attorney’s office will lead the inquiry is not yet clear; CNN reports that Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney in Washington, has told her office she wanted kickback claims examined.
Lewandowski’s lawyer, Adam Trigg, told the Times: “Mr. Lewandowski has not been contacted by the Justice Department regarding any investigation, and he denies any wrongdoing when he was proudly serving his country in a voluntary capacity.” The DHS inspector general’s office said it does not discuss specific investigative matters; the Justice Department declined to comment.
President Trump, on the South Lawn on Thursday, said: “All I know is I want my people to be honest, and if they’re not going to be honest, they have to be prosecuted… There’s stealing from me as president.” Both papers frame the inquiry the same way: the Journal calls it the first publicly known instance of the second-term Justice Department scrutinizing someone close to the president; the Times calls it one of the rare instances.
The Facts
- The inquiry: opened by the Justice Department following a criminal referral from the DHS inspector general (per the Times and the Journal).
- Lewandowski: Trump’s 2016 campaign manager; Noem’s top adviser at DHS until March, serving as a special government employee.
- The focus: contracting practices — he or associates signed off on nearly all DHS spending over $100,000; the Journal previously reported side-work pitches to Middle Eastern governments.
- His lawyer: not contacted by DOJ; denies any wrongdoing. DOJ declined to comment; the IG’s office does not discuss specific matters.
- Noem was fired in March after Senate questioning over $220M in DHS advertising contracts; Lewandowski left with her.
Sources: The New York Times; The Wall Street Journal; CNN; Washington Examiner.
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