Floyd Abrams

So let's, let's step back a little bit and get to know you a little bit.

Um, what first sparked your interest in the law? And I imagine you grew up, you know, immersed in, in the law, observing your father, the legendary First Amendment lawyer, uh, Floyd Abrams.

Um, you know, for those who for some reason don't know, uh, he shaped some of the nation's most important F- First Amendment battles, from the Pentagon Papers to landmark free speak- free speech cases.

Um, did that make a career in law for you, like, almost inevitable, or did you find your own path there to law and journalism?

Yeah.

Um, so look, I think anytime you see a parent, your parent, who loves what they do, that job is gonna look pretty good, right? My dad loved what he did, to some degree what he still does, and so that was inspiring, right? But my sister and I, my sister's a federal judge, uh, now, and, you know, I think she more took directly...

went directly into my father's footsteps, right? Wanted to practice law, um, loved the practice of law the way my dad loves it.

I thought it seemed like a good career but then realized, like, I didn't really wanna practice law.

And if any journalist here or elsewhere wants to talk to me, I'll be glad to talk to you.

Joining us now for consideration of this latest turn in the Starr investigation, Richard Cohen, a columnist for The Washington Post, John Podhoretz, editorial page editor for The New York Post, and Floyd Abrams, a constitutional lawyer for no post.

[laughs] I am pleased to, to have them here.

Uh, in a column in The New York Post, this is what Mr. Podhoretz said.

[laughs]

[laughs]

Richard Cohen, Floyd Abrams, and John Potters, thank you very much.

We'll be right back.

The Supreme Court found, as the Trump administration likely will too, that the concept of national security is nebulous, but the First Amendment is unambiguous.

Joining me now is somebody who knows an awful lot about both the First Amendment and the Pentagon Papers in that case, Floyd Abrams, distinguished expert on constitutional law and the First Amendment.

He currently serves as the senior counsel at Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP, and he has taught First Amendment law at Columbia and Yale Law School.

Floyd, it's been some time, and it's nice to have you back on my show.

Floyd, it's good to see you again.

Thank you for joining us tonight.

Floyd Abrams is a First Amendment attorney and senior counsel at Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP.

All right, coming up, new reporting that reveals a disturbing and up until now hidden cost of Donald Trump's Iran war.

You had the Freedom of Expression at Yale.

The, the, uh, that's the, um, what is that? What is that? That's the Floyd Abrams, uh, group over at, over at Yale.

Okay.

They actually filed a brief in support of UMG.

Once again, amen, brother.

Floyd Abrams is a First Amendment attorney, and he joins me now.

Floyd, Trump labeled CNN and MSNOW and Politico's coverage as negative.

Explain why that characterization of his is important in this case.

The Fox-DC bureau chief should be praised for that.

It would be great if some of the Fox personalities also gave voice in the same way they did back in 2009.

Floyd Abrams, thank you so much.

Really appreciate it.

Uh, well, um, very swiftly it was made clear by the Justice Department we had no intention of prosecuting James Rosen.

But the, to, as, as Floyd Abrams wrote into The New York Times, and Floyd Abrams represented The New York Times in the Pentagon Papers litigation-

Yeah

...

Cahill, Gordon, Sonnet, Rindell, and all was the name of it.

So that's Floyd Abrams' firm down there.

And so I ended up being there to do the litigation.

on the right of journalists to protect their confidential news sources.

at the Cahill firm where I was, because I mentioned I'd known him from doing the briefs for the New York Times and the right of journalists to protect their confidential news sources case.

So the bottom line is we agreed to represent him.

I was in the meeting with Jim Goodell and Floyd Abrams and myself and Eugene Scheinman.

We sat in Floyd Abrams' office, and Jim Goodell pulled the chair up and started telling us what they had.

Then we'll draw a balance sheet assessing the impact of Donald Trump's attacks on the First Amendment against the broad protections that free speech and a free press provide all of us.

We're very fortunate to be joined by prominent First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams, who gives us a historical perspective on the importance of free speech and why more speech is better than government censorship.

Stay with us.

[upbeat music]

He's restricted reporters' access to unclassified defense-related information.

He sued newspapers and publishers for defamation, consumer fraud, and election interference, and he scrubbed historical, scientific, and other data from federal agency websites.

To help us assess what's happening and how we can fight back, we're so pleased to be joined by Floyd Abrams, one of the most prominent First Amendment lawyers in America.

Former Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan called Abrams the most significant First Amendment lawyer of our age.