Justice Department's Pam Bondi fires 20 officials involved in Trump prosecution: Report
A Reuters report states that 20 lawyers, support staff and US marshals who worked on Smith's investigation were laid off by the Justice Department. The report adds that at least two people fired by Attorney General Pam Bondi worked most recently in other US Attorneys' offices in Florida and North Carolina.
Trump, who had declined to accept the 2020 presidential election results and continues to allege election fraud without providing any evidence, was being investigated by the then Justice Department officials over retention of classified records and efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
The Justice Department has been on a firing spree since January citing Trump's executive powers under the US Constitution of employees who worked on matters involving the Republican president or his supporters. The earliest employees dismissed by the Justice Department was on January 27 when 14 attorneys were fired for working on Smith's team against Trump.
Since Trump took office on January 20, at least 37 people from Smith's team have been fired from the Justice Department, a report states. The Justice Department has recently also fired officials involved in the investigation of January 6, 2021 US Capitol riots, wherein defendants stormed the Capitol building in an attempt to restrict the US Congress from certifying President Joe Biden's 2020 election victory.
The two cases brought by Smith in 2023 against Trump, which includes illegally retaining national security documents and plotting to overturn his 2020 election defeat, were dropped by the court just before Trump took oath of office and never went to trial.
Attorney General Pam Bondi has received President Trump's backing over decisions taken by her and the department related to Epstein files.
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