By Aiden Pink July 13, 2017

The attorney handling President Trump’s defense related to the Russia investigation threatened a stranger in a series of profanity-laced emails, the news website ProPublica reported Thursday.

The recipient of the emails, whom ProPublic described as “a retired public relations professional in the western United States who asked not to be identified,” had sent Kasowitz an email with the subject line “Resign Now” after reading a previous ProPublica article that stated that Kasowitz does not have a security clearance — despite handling a case dealing with national security issues — and would likely not receive one if he applied due to his alleged history of alcoholism. (Kasowitz’s spokesman disputed aspects of that report).

Kasowitz responded to the “Resign Now” email with a series of angry messages between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m. Wednesday night. His first response was two words: “F*** you.”

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

He followed up 15 minutes later:

And you don’t know me, but I know you How dare you send me an email like that I’m on you now. You are f****** with me now Let’s see who you are Watch your back , b****

Kasowitz continued to send messages, including one that mentioned his Jewish heritage:

I’m Jewish. I presume you are too. Stop being afraid. Call me. Or give me your number and I will call you. I already know where you live, I’m on you. You might as well call me. You will see me. I promise. Bro.

The recipient of the emails told ProPublica that he was so alarmed by their contents that he alerted the FBI.

Kasowitz said in a statement on Thursday that he will make an apology:

A spokesman for Marc Kasowitz says he’ll apologize for the threatening email, says it came after a long day. pic.twitter.com/lRLY3NKBkW

— Claudia Koerner (@ClaudiaKoerner) July 13, 2017

The New York Times reported Tuesday that Kasowitz may quit representing Trump due to his frustration with being kept “out of the loop” due to the interventions of presidential son-in-law/senior advisor Jared Kushner.

Contact Aiden Pink at [email protected] or on Twitter, @aidenpink.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount