The battle between President Trump and a prominent Washington law firm has taken a new turn this week, as a judge intervenes to pause Trump’s actions.

The controversy kicked off when Trump targeted the firm, Perkins Coie, in an executive order.

But all sides agree that the issue is much broader.

To the critics, Trump is seeking to intimidate the legal community, discouraging them from representing his opponents. To his supporters, Trump is taking justifiable action over past shady behavior.

As is so often the case with the current president, the episode hearkens back to the 2016 presidential election.

So what’s going on?

What did Trump do?

On March 6, the president issued an executive order with Perkins Coie in its crosshairs. An order aimed at one private company is highly unusual.

The text of the order began by hitting the firm for allegedly engaging in “dishonest and dangerous activity” over a period of “decades.”

The president went on to assert that “notably, in 2016 while representing failed Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, Perkins Coie hired Fusion GPS, which then manufactured a false 'dossier' designed to steal an election.”

This is a reference to the infamous “Steele dossier.”

Trump also hit out at the firm for working “with activist donors including George Soros,” the billionaire funder of many liberal causes. And the president objected to Perkins Coie allegedly running discriminatory fellowships and hiring practices, by which he appeared to mean policies intended to encourage diversity.

Trump........

© The Hill