First Week in Trump's DOJ Described as 'It feels like a non-violent war'
Tension has gripped the staff at the troubled law-enforcement agency as a new reality takes hold.
TroibNews 
Career lawyers and staff at the Department of Justice (DOJ) report feeling besieged by the rapid changes that unfolded during the first week of the Trump administration.
President Donald Trump’s acting attorney general dismissed over a dozen prosecutors involved in criminal cases against him, reassigned senior officials within major divisions, and drastically altered workplace regulations—all within days. Despite these changes aligning with Trump's campaign promises to reshape the DOJ, the speed of implementation caught many staffers off guard.
“It feels like a non-violent war. It’s just wild. Everybody’s a sitting duck and these people have no power or control over the situation,” remarked one DOJ career employee. “People are just in a state of shock and devastated. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen … Nothing that happened during the first Trump administration came anywhere close to this.”
PMG conducted interviews with more than a dozen current and former DOJ officials, most of whom spoke anonymously due to concerns about reprisals.
The impact of Trump’s blanket pardons for Jan. 6 rioters, which negated years of prosecutorial work, added to the demoralization of an already anxious workforce. The abrupt changes in DOJ litigation policies, including a widespread suspension of litigation by the Civil Rights Division, only compounded staff distress. However, employees assert that the firings of attorneys who supported Special Counsel Jack Smith, combined with the reassignment of seasoned national-security prosecutors, have created greater disruption than any alterations in policy.
Concerns surged following Trump's decision to reassign top career leaders from the National Security Division and Criminal Division to less desirable positions. Among those affected were the department’s highest-ranking career official, Associate Deputy Attorney General Bradley Weinsheimer, and Public Integrity Section head Corey Amundson. A source indicated that these officials were given just 15 days to accept new roles on a team focused on combating sanctuary city policies, though many, including Amundson, are expected to decline the offers and exit the department.
The firings initiated that week, which included no reassignment offers, escalated the atmosphere of tension.
“It's got to be among the most demoralizing moments in the history of the Department of Justice,” noted a former DOJ official. “It is a flat-out purge of individuals who this administration must view either of suspect loyalty or have worked on matters they just did not like. … We are in the early phases of what to me is just looking like a wholesale politically inspired demolition of the Department of Justice in key places.”
Acting Attorney General James McHenry, temporarily leading the department while Pam Bondi awaits Senate confirmation, orchestrated the dismissals of prosecutors from the special counsel’s team. According to a DOJ spokesperson, McHenry “did not believe these officials could be trusted to faithfully implement the President’s agenda because of their significant role in prosecuting the President.”
Additionally, changes to personnel policies, such as the mandate for employees to return to in-office work five days a week, contributed to feelings of instability among DOJ staff. Many employees, particularly those with young children, found the retraction of flexible arrangements instituted during the pandemic challenging.
Government-wide directives that instructed agencies to “identify all employees on probationary periods” have intensified fears among DOJ personnel who have been with the agency for under two years and lack essential civil service protections.
“It’s the probation announcement that has people completely terrified,” reported a career staffer. “There are a lot of question marks around some of these programmatic shifts, but there are not really question marks with respect to some of these fundamental employment issues.”
Prosecutors handling cases related to the January 6 Capitol riot have also experienced a decline in morale, especially after the pardons Trump issued to many convicted individuals. Despite their concerns, the sheer number of affected employees may serve as a barrier to widespread retaliation. Hundreds of attorneys engaged in what the DOJ labeled the largest prosecutorial and investigative effort in its history for January 6 cases.
“Obviously, they can’t fire everybody,” the former DOJ career official stated.
In the FBI, a directive from the DOJ’s acting No. 2 official, Emil Bove, to shift focus on the nation's approximately 200 Joint Terrorism Task Forces towards immigration enforcement has raised concerns among agents about prioritizing national security threats.
“The FBI and DOJ do not have infinite resources to do infinite things,” said Chuck Rosenberg, a former FBI chief of staff. “That is why, for the last quarter century, they have prioritized national security work. There are genuine and dangerous counterterrorism and national security threats out there and we divert resources from them — and sideline experienced career professionals — at our peril.”
Another former FBI official, with considerable experience managing the task forces, expressed that the DOJ's shift could lead to scrutiny about the FBI’s performance the next time there is a major failure to prevent a terrorist attack.
“You take your eye off the ball for the more concerning type of a threat — whether domestic terrorism, international terrorism, homegrown violent extremism or foreign-inspired plots,” noted the official, who requested anonymity due to current employment constraints. “You are taking valuable resources and dedicating them to a lower-priority issue at the expense of addressing the most pressing threats.”
Compounding the turmoil at the DOJ are several striking public comments from the acting U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C., Ed Martin. He recently endorsed Trump’s pardon of two D.C. police officers convicted of conspiracy to obstruct justice in a case tied to the death of a suspect.
“Hear me loud and clear: we will stand with the Blue against the thugs and scum who terrorize DC,” Martin declared on social media. He further emphasized his commitment to law enforcement, contrasting it with what he characterized as a political approach under the Biden administration.
While many law enforcement officials opposed the prosecution and welcomed the pardons, some former prosecutors criticized Martin's comments as advocating for a more aggressive policing style that may undermine oversight.
“A lot of people with little or no experience in law enforcement or criminal prosecution often think the solution is to empower violent or lawless police officers,” said Brendan Ballou, who recently resigned from the Justice Department after working on January 6 cases. “My sense is that that is completely counterproductive and, frankly, betrays a certain lack of experience on the part of people saying that.”
Martin's rhetoric mirrors Trump’s past calls for more aggressive police action, including urging officers to be less gentle with suspects, which poses potential repercussions for prosecutors in the courtroom.
“You know that very good defense attorneys are going to turn this against the office,” a former federal prosecutor remarked.
Martin also had a notable public conflict with a federal judge, accusing him of overstepping by mandating that some January 6 defendants whose sentences Trump commuted stay away from the Capitol. The judge, Amit Mehta, later reduced the terms of the ruling but expressed irritation with Martin's approach.
“Some people apparently equate sounding tough with effective leadership, but effective leaders think and talk in serious and sophisticated and thoughtful ways,” Rosenberg concluded. “This ain’t that.”
Despite the ongoing upheaval, there have been few reports of departures among career lawyers thus far.
“Every government employee in moments like this needs to decide where they can best do the right thing,” Ballou remarked. “For some, that’s by staying inside government or by leaving and leaving noisily. And I thought I could be most effective by leaving noisily.”
Anna Muller contributed to this report for TROIB News
President Donald Trump’s acting attorney general dismissed over a dozen prosecutors involved in criminal cases against him, reassigned senior officials within major divisions, and drastically altered workplace regulations—all within days. Despite these changes aligning with Trump's campaign promises to reshape the DOJ, the speed of implementation caught many staffers off guard.
“It feels like a non-violent war. It’s just wild. Everybody’s a sitting duck and these people have no power or control over the situation,” remarked one DOJ career employee. “People are just in a state of shock and devastated. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen … Nothing that happened during the first Trump administration came anywhere close to this.”
PMG conducted interviews with more than a dozen current and former DOJ officials, most of whom spoke anonymously due to concerns about reprisals.
The impact of Trump’s blanket pardons for Jan. 6 rioters, which negated years of prosecutorial work, added to the demoralization of an already anxious workforce. The abrupt changes in DOJ litigation policies, including a widespread suspension of litigation by the Civil Rights Division, only compounded staff distress. However, employees assert that the firings of attorneys who supported Special Counsel Jack Smith, combined with the reassignment of seasoned national-security prosecutors, have created greater disruption than any alterations in policy.
Concerns surged following Trump's decision to reassign top career leaders from the National Security Division and Criminal Division to less desirable positions. Among those affected were the department’s highest-ranking career official, Associate Deputy Attorney General Bradley Weinsheimer, and Public Integrity Section head Corey Amundson. A source indicated that these officials were given just 15 days to accept new roles on a team focused on combating sanctuary city policies, though many, including Amundson, are expected to decline the offers and exit the department.
The firings initiated that week, which included no reassignment offers, escalated the atmosphere of tension.
“It's got to be among the most demoralizing moments in the history of the Department of Justice,” noted a former DOJ official. “It is a flat-out purge of individuals who this administration must view either of suspect loyalty or have worked on matters they just did not like. … We are in the early phases of what to me is just looking like a wholesale politically inspired demolition of the Department of Justice in key places.”
Acting Attorney General James McHenry, temporarily leading the department while Pam Bondi awaits Senate confirmation, orchestrated the dismissals of prosecutors from the special counsel’s team. According to a DOJ spokesperson, McHenry “did not believe these officials could be trusted to faithfully implement the President’s agenda because of their significant role in prosecuting the President.”
Additionally, changes to personnel policies, such as the mandate for employees to return to in-office work five days a week, contributed to feelings of instability among DOJ staff. Many employees, particularly those with young children, found the retraction of flexible arrangements instituted during the pandemic challenging.
Government-wide directives that instructed agencies to “identify all employees on probationary periods” have intensified fears among DOJ personnel who have been with the agency for under two years and lack essential civil service protections.
“It’s the probation announcement that has people completely terrified,” reported a career staffer. “There are a lot of question marks around some of these programmatic shifts, but there are not really question marks with respect to some of these fundamental employment issues.”
Prosecutors handling cases related to the January 6 Capitol riot have also experienced a decline in morale, especially after the pardons Trump issued to many convicted individuals. Despite their concerns, the sheer number of affected employees may serve as a barrier to widespread retaliation. Hundreds of attorneys engaged in what the DOJ labeled the largest prosecutorial and investigative effort in its history for January 6 cases.
“Obviously, they can’t fire everybody,” the former DOJ career official stated.
In the FBI, a directive from the DOJ’s acting No. 2 official, Emil Bove, to shift focus on the nation's approximately 200 Joint Terrorism Task Forces towards immigration enforcement has raised concerns among agents about prioritizing national security threats.
“The FBI and DOJ do not have infinite resources to do infinite things,” said Chuck Rosenberg, a former FBI chief of staff. “That is why, for the last quarter century, they have prioritized national security work. There are genuine and dangerous counterterrorism and national security threats out there and we divert resources from them — and sideline experienced career professionals — at our peril.”
Another former FBI official, with considerable experience managing the task forces, expressed that the DOJ's shift could lead to scrutiny about the FBI’s performance the next time there is a major failure to prevent a terrorist attack.
“You take your eye off the ball for the more concerning type of a threat — whether domestic terrorism, international terrorism, homegrown violent extremism or foreign-inspired plots,” noted the official, who requested anonymity due to current employment constraints. “You are taking valuable resources and dedicating them to a lower-priority issue at the expense of addressing the most pressing threats.”
Compounding the turmoil at the DOJ are several striking public comments from the acting U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C., Ed Martin. He recently endorsed Trump’s pardon of two D.C. police officers convicted of conspiracy to obstruct justice in a case tied to the death of a suspect.
“Hear me loud and clear: we will stand with the Blue against the thugs and scum who terrorize DC,” Martin declared on social media. He further emphasized his commitment to law enforcement, contrasting it with what he characterized as a political approach under the Biden administration.
While many law enforcement officials opposed the prosecution and welcomed the pardons, some former prosecutors criticized Martin's comments as advocating for a more aggressive policing style that may undermine oversight.
“A lot of people with little or no experience in law enforcement or criminal prosecution often think the solution is to empower violent or lawless police officers,” said Brendan Ballou, who recently resigned from the Justice Department after working on January 6 cases. “My sense is that that is completely counterproductive and, frankly, betrays a certain lack of experience on the part of people saying that.”
Martin's rhetoric mirrors Trump’s past calls for more aggressive police action, including urging officers to be less gentle with suspects, which poses potential repercussions for prosecutors in the courtroom.
“You know that very good defense attorneys are going to turn this against the office,” a former federal prosecutor remarked.
Martin also had a notable public conflict with a federal judge, accusing him of overstepping by mandating that some January 6 defendants whose sentences Trump commuted stay away from the Capitol. The judge, Amit Mehta, later reduced the terms of the ruling but expressed irritation with Martin's approach.
“Some people apparently equate sounding tough with effective leadership, but effective leaders think and talk in serious and sophisticated and thoughtful ways,” Rosenberg concluded. “This ain’t that.”
Despite the ongoing upheaval, there have been few reports of departures among career lawyers thus far.
“Every government employee in moments like this needs to decide where they can best do the right thing,” Ballou remarked. “For some, that’s by staying inside government or by leaving and leaving noisily. And I thought I could be most effective by leaving noisily.”
Anna Muller contributed to this report for TROIB News
