Gregg Jarrett

Gregg Jarrett
Born Gregory Walter Jarrett
(1955-04-07) April 7, 1955
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation News anchor Fox News Channel, Defense attorney
Spouse(s) Catherine Kennedy Anderson (1993–present)

Gregory Walter "Gregg" Jarrett (born April 7, 1955) is an American news anchor, author, and attorney. He joined the Fox News Channel in November 2002, after working over ten years for local NBC and ABC TV stations, as well as national networks Court TV and MSNBC.

Jarrett is known for his pro-Trump commentary, and for his criticism of the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election. In 2018, he published The Russia Hoax, which argues that the "deep state" have sought to undermine the presidency of Donald Trump and protect 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. He has described Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe as "illegitimate and corrupt" and likened the FBI to the KGB.

Biography

Jarrett was born in Los Angeles and raised in nearby San Marino, California, graduating from San Marino High School in 1973.[1] He graduated magna cum laude from Claremont Men's College in 1977 with a degree in political science. He graduated from law school at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, in 1980, and worked as a defense attorney for several years in San Francisco with the firm of Gordon & Rees LLP. As of February 3, 2015, his California State Bar license is listed as "inactive."[2] Jarrett has taught law as an adjunct professor at New York Law School and lectured at other law schools.[3]

Jarrett joined the Fox News Channel in November 2002.

Prior to joining Fox, Jarrett worked at MSNBC.[4]

Jarrett also worked at Court TV, now known as TruTV, for eight years, serving as the anchor of Prime Time Justice. He hosted the network's nationally syndicated half-hour magazine show, Inside America's Courts, which was seen daily on broadcast stations (NBC in New York City and Los Angeles) and weekends on CNBC.

Prior to Court TV, Jarrett worked for a number of local stations. including KCSM-TV in San Francisco, California; WMDT-TV in Salisbury, Maryland; WKFT-TV in Raleigh, North Carolina and KSNW-TV in Wichita, Kansas. While at KSNW, he received a Heartland Emmy Award for the "Turnpike Tornado" news segment.[5]

Pro-Trump commentary and attacks on DOJ

Jarrett has been accused of allowing his political positions to color his legal commentary, often choosing his legal positions based on which political party would be affected. In August 2017, Jarrett called for a grand jury for Hillary Clinton over her email controversy.[6] A day later, when a grand jury was impaneled by special counsel Robert Mueller in the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections, Jarrett said that grand juries were an "undemocratic farce".[6] Jarrett later called the Mueller investigation "illegitimate and corrupt" on Fox News, stating that "the FBI has become America's secret police" and "a shadow government".[7][8] Jarrett likened the FBI to the KGB, the Soviet security agency, for which he received PolitiFact's "Pants on Fire" rating.[9] According to PolitiFact, "numerous historians of the FBI and the KGB say the comparison is ridiculous. The KGB implemented the goals of the Communist Party leadership, including countless examples of tortures and summary executions. The FBI, by contrast, is subject to the rule of law and is democratically accountable."[9]

In the context of possible collusion between Donald Trump's presidential campaign and the Russian government, Jarrett has said that any such collusion would not be a crime: "Collusion is not a crime. Only in antitrust law. You can collude all you want with a foreign government in an election. There is no such statute."[10][11] According to PolitiFact, the statement is false. Three prominent election law scholars said there are at least four laws that would prohibit the sort of activities under investigation, whether those laws mention collusion or not. Jarrett's focus on a single word fails to reflect the reach of the criminal code."[10]

Jarrett has said that former FBI Director James Comey may have broken the law by releasing a memo to press wherein Comey recounted a conversation with President Trump where Trump requested that Comey end the investigation into Michael T. Flynn.[12] University of Texas School of Law professor Bobby Chesney said Jarrett's assertion was "nonsense".[12] University of Georgia law professor Diane Marie Amann also refuted Jarrett's assertion.[13]

In February 2018, Jarrett asserted that he had a "highly reliable congressional source" which told him that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein "used the power of his office to threaten members of Congress"; The Huffington Post described the assertion as "dubious".[8]

The Russia Hoax

In 2018, Jarrett published the book The Russia Hoax which alleges that "Hillary Clinton’s deep state collaborators in government" engaged in "nefarious actions" to protect Clinton and undermine Trump.[14] The book was an Amazon and New York Times best-seller.[14] President Trump praised the book in a tweet.[15] According to Rolling Stone magazine, the book "amounts to 286 pages of recapping every single bad thing the Clintons have ever been accused of doing (Uranium One is, again, mentioned dozens of times.)... The idea that the Clinton email investigation could be dropped, and the Russia investigation taken up just a few months later isn’t seen as coincidence, but conspiracy, a bit of revenge enacted by an intelligence community full of Clinton fans."[14] In a review for The Washington Post, Carlos Lozada described the book as a Trump hagiography.[16] PolitiFact rated a number of claims made in Jarrett's book as false, misleading and unsubstantiated.[17]

Personal life

In mid-May 2014, Jarrett requested a leave of absence for personal reasons. His leave was granted by Fox and he was replaced by other journalists with no date set for his return. Jarrett was arrested in May 2014 by Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport police, who were called to an airport bar after reports that Jarrett seemed intoxicated and acted belligerently. Jarrett was booked into Hennepin County Jail and charged with interfering with a police officer.[18] Jarrett pleaded guilty in July 2014 to disorderly conduct in connection with the incident. CNN reported that Jarrett's arrest occurred right after Jarret had checked out of a rehabilitation facility.[19] Jarrett returned to Fox News before the end of 2014.[19]

References

  1. ↑ "Gregg Jarrett's profile". Fox News Channel. 2014.
  2. ↑ "California State Bar records". 2014.
  3. ↑ Lane, Judy (Autumn 1997). "ALUMNI PROFILE /Gregg Jarrett '80: A Legal Career in Television" (PDF). UC Hastings Alumni Magazine. p. 12. Retrieved May 11, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Pills possible factor in Fox News anchor's arrest". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2018-08-27.
  5. ↑ "1991 Heartland Emmy Awards". Heartland Chapter of NATAS. National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. 1991. Retrieved May 11, 2014.
  6. 1 2 Rowland, Geoffrey (August 4, 2017). "Fox's Jarrett calls grand juries 'undemocratic farce' one day after calling for one for Clinton". The Hill. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  7. ↑ Concha, Joe (December 7, 2017). "Fox legal analyst Jarrett: Mueller investigation 'illegitimate and corrupt'". The Hill. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  8. 1 2 Reilly, Ryan J. (2018-02-07). "Fox News' Latest Attack On Rod Rosenstein: He Threatened GOP Congressmen". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2018-02-07.
  9. 1 2 "Has the FBI 'become America's secret police'?". @politifact. Retrieved 2017-12-09.
  10. 1 2 "Fox News host wrong that no law bans Russia-Trump collusion". PolitiFact. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  11. ↑ "If Donald Trump Is a Crook, What Kind Is He?". Foreign Policy. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  12. 1 2 "No, Jim Comey Is Not In Legal Jeopardy". Lawfare. May 17, 2017. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Trump asks if Comey's leaks 'totally illegal.' Not really". PolitiFact. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
  14. 1 2 3 Merlan, Anna (2018-08-16). "A Deep Dive Into the Deep State: Unpacking the Summer of Trump Conspiracy Theories". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2018-08-27.
  15. ↑ Birnbaum, Emily (2018-08-02). "Trump praises Fox analyst's book claiming there's a scheme to 'frame' Trump". TheHill. Retrieved 2018-08-27.
  16. ↑ "Review | I read six sycophantic pro-Trump books — and then I read Omarosa". Washington Post. Retrieved 2018-09-02.
  17. ↑ "Fact-checking Fox News analyst's pro-Trump 'The Russia Hoax'". PunditFact. Retrieved 2018-08-27.
  18. ↑ Stanglin, Doug (May 22, 2014). "Pills possible factor in Fox News anchor's arrest". USA Today.
  19. 1 2 Tom Kludt, Fox News releases Bob Beckel over his 'personal issues', CNN (June 25, 2015).
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