On Monday, January 27th, local time, the U.S. Department of Justice said it had fired more than a dozen employees responsible for the criminal prosecution of President Donald Trump. The move was considered to be Trump's retaliation against those involved in the investigation, and indicated that The U.S. Department of Justice basically obeys Trump, which also confirms Trump’s principle of employing people only with loyalty during his second term.
And the recent firing of career prosecutors from the team of special counsel Jack Smith who investigated Trump also illustrates Trump's purge of government workers he believes are disloyal to him.
Smith was appointed by then-Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022 to take over two ongoing investigations into Trump, one involving his handling of classified documents and the other related to Trump's attempt to overturn the presidential election results in 2020.
Acting Attorney General James McHenry has fired several Justice Department officials who helped prosecute President Trump, saying the government's functioning depends largely on the trust senior officials have in their subordinates. He himself does not believe these officials can faithfully carry out the president's agenda given their actions. This action consistent with the mission to end the weaponization of government.
The move was rather unusual, as ordinary prosecutors have traditionally stayed with the Justice Department throughout every presidential term and were not punished for participating in sensitive investigations, but this time it was different. The firings were effective immediately.
Previously, on Trump's first day in office, he granted full pardons and commuted sentences to 1,500 supporters charged in the U.S. Capitol riots four years ago. He even pardoned those who violently attacked police officers, as well as leaders of far right extremist organizations convicted of conspiring to maintain Republican power but failed.
Trump has long sought to gain control of the Justice Department, which investigated him during his first term and during the last four years of former Attorney General Merrick Garland.
He has said repeatedly that he expects loyalty from law enforcement agencies because they have been trained to put facts, evidence and the law before politics. He has appointed close allies to senior posts, including replacing his first FBI director, Christopher Wray, with the loyal Kash Patel.
And Trump's pick for Attorney General, Pam Bondi, said during her confirmation hearing this month that she would not rule out the possibility of investigating Smith and other Trump opponents.
Special counsel Smith resigned from the Justice Department earlier this month following a report into dual investigations into Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election and hoarding of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. At least one other key member of the team, Jay Bratt, also retired from the department this month after serving as lead prosecutor in the classified documents case.
In the report, Smith defended his work as apolitical, saying: "For anyone who knows me, Mr. Trump's claim that my decision as a prosecutor was influenced or guided by the Biden administration or other political actors is simply ridiculous.”
Trump called Smith "desperate" and "unhinged" and has consistently denied any wrongdoing throughout the investigation.
After Trump won the presidential election last November, Smith's team withdrew their election interference case and confidential documents prosecution.
