DOT attorneys fired after memo gaffe

Unforced errors are the death of any administration, and this administration has already had more than its fair share.

The latest being an “accidental” upload from attorneys pushing back against the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) fight with New York over congestion tolls.

Oops

Basically, the attorneys working with the DOT and Secretary Duffy wound up giving New York the battle plan to fight against Duffy’s arguments to block the congestion toll.

They outlined the weakest parts of his arguments, not to mention highlighting that Duffy really does not have the power to hold back funding, as it was already approved by Congress and signed into law by a sitting president.

For example, the letter, in part, stated, “It is unlikely that Judge [Lewis] Liman or further courts of review will accept the argument that the [congestion pricing plan] was not a statutorily authorized ‘value pricing’ pilot under the Value Pricing Pilot Program. We have been unable to identify a compelling legal argument to support this position.”

The letter was posted on a court docket, then removed, but the damage was done.

You’re Fired

That gaffe just cost those attorneys their jobs, as the administration was not happy over yet another leak.

DOT spokesperson Halee Dobbins stated, “Are SDNY lawyers on this case incompetent, or was this their attempt to RESIST? At the very least, it’s legal malpractice. It’s sad to see a premier legal organization continue to fall into such disgrace.”

She later added, “SDNY’s memo doesn’t represent reality. Kathy Hochul’s congestion pricing war against the working class was hastily approved by the Biden Administration after Donald Trump was elected.

“Taxpayers already financed the highways that Hochul is now shutting down to the driving public and there is no free alternative. This is unprecedented and illegal. If New York doesn’t shut it down, the Department of Transportation is considering halting projects and funding for the state.”

More Firings

As I am sure you know, these were far from the only dismissals from the administration lately, as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s staff is going through massive turnover.

Last week, former senior adviser Dan Caldwell, former deputy chief of staff Darin Selnick, and Colin Carroll, the deputy Defense secretary’s former chief of staff, were all let go due to their alleged roles in leaks at the Pentagon, which they have denied.

The group stated, “Unnamed Pentagon officials have slandered our character with baseless attacks on our way out the door.”

Something tells me this will be yet another lawsuit to eat up more of our tax dollars. If it comes down to that, I hope Hegseth can prove his case because if he cannot, we are also probably going to get stuck paying a massive settlement to these men.