Donald Trump fires employees involved in probe against him: ‘Could not be trusted’
Several prosecutor were reassigned across divisions as well for being involved in criminal investigations against Trump
The US Justice Department, under Donald Trump, said Monday that it had laid off more than a dozen employees who were involved in criminal investigations against the President, reported news agency PTI.
The move targeted prosecutors who worked on special counsel Jack Smith's team, who had filed criminal charges against Trump in two separate cases: one in federal district court regarding election interference and a second one regarding retaining classified documents from the White House.
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Jack Smith also resigned from the department on January 10.
An anonymous Justice Department official, confirmed to PTI that the terminations were made by acting Attorney General James McHenry.
The decision to lay off the prosecutors is part of a massive upheaval as power transitions from the Biden to the Trump administration. During the election campaign trail Trump had vowed to fire those officials in government who were deemed disloyal to him or had opposed him.
Attorney General James McHenry, who was appointed by Trump, stated that those who were fired "could not be trusted to faithfully implement the President’s agenda because of their significant role in prosecuting the President," reported Reuters quoting a Justice Department official.
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The Trump administration also reassigned up to 20 senior Justice Department officials across divisions, including Bradley Weinsheimer, the top ethics official, and the former chief of the public corruption section, Corey Amundson.
Amundson also announced his resignation on Monday.
Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, Pam Bondi, also said at her confirmation hearing this month that she would not play politics but did not rule out the potential for investigations into Trump's opponents such as Jack Smith.
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