Latest news with #Georgetown-affiliated
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Georgetown Law School defends practices amid US attorney's DEI threat
Georgetown Law School Dean William Treanor is defending his school's curriculum after the Washington, D.C., U.S. attorney threatened to not hire any students from institutions that teach diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). Interim D.C. U.S. Attorney Ed Martin sent a letter to the law school last month asking if the institution eliminated all connection to DEI, a top target of the Trump administration. 'At this time, you should know that no applicant for our fellows program, our summer internship, or employment in our office who is a student or affiliated with a law school or university that continues to teach and utilize DEI will be considered,' Martin wrote in the letter, according to The Washington Post. Treanor responded on Thursday the school complies with all laws around discrimination and harassment, but he shot down Martin's attempt to influence curricula. 'The First Amendment, however, guarantees that the government cannot direct what Georgetown and its faculty teach and how to teach it,' Treanor said. The law school dean said it is a 'constitutional violation' for Martin to say he will not hire from certain schools unless they teach what he wants. 'We look forward to your confirming that any Georgetown-affiliated candidates for employment with your office will receive full and fair consideration,' Treanor concluded in the letter. The Hill has reached out to Martin's office for comment. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Independent
07-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Georgetown law dean rebuffs DEI warning from top federal prosecutor for DC
Georgetown Law School's dean on Thursday rebuffed an unusual warning from the top federal prosecutor for Washington, D.C., that his office won't hire the private school's students if it doesn't eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Dean William Treanor told acting U.S. Attorney Ed Martin that the First Amendment prohibits the government from dictating what Georgetown's faculty teach or how to teach it. 'Given the First Amendment's protection of a university's freedom to determine its own curriculum and how to deliver it, the constitutional violation behind this threat is clear, as is the attack on the University's mission as a Jesuit and Catholic institution,' Treanor wrote in a letter addressed to Martin. Martin's exchange with the dean isn't the first time that the conservative activist has used his office as a platform for parroting the political priorities of the Republican president who gave him the job in January. Martin, who refers to himself as one of President Donald Trump's attorneys, roiled his office by firing and demoting attorneys who prosecuted Trump supporters for storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Martin promoted Trump's baseless claims of election fraud in the 2020 presidential election and represented Jan. 6 riot defendants before taking office. His 'letter of inquiry' to Georgetown also dovetails with Trump's agenda. On his first day back in the White House, Trump signed an executive order ending DEI programs in the federal government. In a letter dated Feb. 17 but emailed to the dean on March 3, Martin said a whistleblower informed him that Georgetown Law School "continues to promote and teach DEI." 'This is unacceptable,' he wrote. Martin warned the dean that his office wouldn't consider any Georgetown law students for jobs, summer internships or fellowships until his 'letter of inquiry' about DEI programs is resolved. A spokesperson for Martin's office had no comment on Thursday. Treanor said Georgetown was 'founded on the principle that serious and sustained discourse among people of different faiths, cultures, and beliefs promotes intellectual, ethical, and spiritual understanding.' 'Your letter challenges Georgetown's ability to define our mission as an educational institution,' he wrote. Treanor closed the letter by writing, 'We look forward to your confirming that any Georgetown-affiliated candidates for employment with your office will receive full and fair consideration.' Also on Thursday, Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee asked the Office of Disciplinary Counsel in Washington to investigate their 'grave concern' that Martin may have engaged in professional misconduct since taking office. In a letter to the office, the senators accused Martin of repeatedly abusing his position, including by 'using the threat of prosecution to intimidate government employees and chill the speech of private citizens.' 'Mr. Martin's conduct not only speaks to his fitness as a lawyer; his activities are part of a broader course of conduct by President Trump and his allies to undermine the traditional independence of Department of Justice investigations and prosecutions and the rule of law,' the senators wrote. A spokesperson for Martin's office wouldn't comment on the Georgetown letters and didn't respond to a separate request for comment on the senators' letter.
Associated Press
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Georgetown law dean rebuffs DEI warning from top federal prosecutor for DC
WASHINGTON (AP) — Georgetown Law School's dean on Thursday rebuffed an unusual warning from the top federal prosecutor for Washington, D.C., that his office won't hire the private school's students if it doesn't eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Dean William Treanor told acting U.S. Attorney Ed Martin that the First Amendment prohibits the government from dictating what Georgetown's faculty teach or how to teach it. 'Given the First Amendment's protection of a university's freedom to determine its own curriculum and how to deliver it, the constitutional violation behind this threat is clear, as is the attack on the University's mission as a Jesuit and Catholic institution,' Treanor wrote in a letter addressed to Martin. Martin's exchange with the dean isn't the first time that the conservative activist has used his office as a platform for parroting the political priorities of the Republican president who gave him the job in January. Martin, who refers to himself as one of President Donald Trump's attorneys, roiled his office by firing and demoting attorneys who prosecuted Trump supporters for storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Martin promoted Trump's baseless claims of election fraud in the 2020 presidential election and represented Jan. 6 riot defendants before taking office. His 'letter of inquiry' to Georgetown also dovetails with Trump's agenda. On his first day back in the White House, Trump signed an executive order ending DEI programs in the federal government. In a letter dated Feb. 17 but emailed to the dean on March 3, Martin said a whistleblower informed him that Georgetown Law School 'continues to promote and teach DEI.' 'This is unacceptable,' he wrote. Martin warned the dean that his office wouldn't consider any Georgetown law students for jobs, summer internships or fellowships until his 'letter of inquiry' about DEI programs is resolved. A spokesperson for Martin's office had no comment on Thursday. Treanor said Georgetown was 'founded on the principle that serious and sustained discourse among people of different faiths, cultures, and beliefs promotes intellectual, ethical, and spiritual understanding.' 'Your letter challenges Georgetown's ability to define our mission as an educational institution,' he wrote. Treanor closed the letter by writing, 'We look forward to your confirming that any Georgetown-affiliated candidates for employment with your office will receive full and fair consideration.' Also on Thursday, Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee asked the Office of Disciplinary Counsel in Washington to investigate their 'grave concern' that Martin may have engaged in professional misconduct since taking office. In a letter to the office, the senators accused Martin of repeatedly abusing his position, including by 'using the threat of prosecution to intimidate government employees and chill the speech of private citizens.' 'Mr. Martin's conduct not only speaks to his fitness as a lawyer; his activities are part of a broader course of conduct by President Trump and his allies to undermine the traditional independence of Department of Justice investigations and prosecutions and the rule of law,' the senators wrote.
The Hill
06-03-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Georgetown Law School defends practices amid US attorney DEI threat
Georgetown Law School Dean William Treanor is defending his school's curriculum after the Washington, D.C., U.S. attorney threatened to not hire any students from institutions that teach diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). Interim D.C. U.S. Attorney Ed Martin sent a letter to the law school last month asking if the institution eliminated all connection to DEI, a top target of the Trump administration. 'At this time, you should know that no applicant for our fellows program, our summer internship, or employment in our office who is a student or affiliated with a law school or university that continues to teach and utilize DEI will be considered,' Martin wrote in the letter, according to The Washington Post. Treanor responded on Thursday the school complies with all laws around discrimination and harassment, but he shot down Martin's attempt to influence curricula. 'The First Amendment, however, guarantees that the government cannot direct what Georgetown and its faculty teach and how to teach it,' Treanor said. The law school dean said it is a 'constitutional violation' for Martin to say he will not hire from certain schools unless they teach what he wants. 'We look forward to your confirming that any Georgetown-affiliated candidates for employment with your office will receive full and fair consideration,' Treanor concluded in the letter.
