N.J. federal judges sideline Alina Habba as top prosecutor, DOJ ousts her replacement
President Trump installed Habba, who had served as his personal attorney, on March 24 in an interim capacity. An appointee can lead a U.S. attorney's office for up to 120 days pending Senate confirmation. Habba was not formally nominated for the role until July 1 and has not been confirmed.
The state's district judges voted to replace her. Chief Judge Renée Bumb wrote in an order Tuesday that they appointed Habba's first assistant, longtime prosecutor Desiree Leigh Grace, to the role.
Hours later, Attorney General Pam Bondi said the Justice Department had "removed" Grace, accusing "rogue judges" of "threatening" the president's constitutional powers.
A Justice Department official told CBS News that Grace is no longer with the department.
New Jersey Sens. Cory Booker and Andy Kim, both Democrats, condemned Grace's removal.
"The firing of a career public servant, lawfully appointed by the court, is another blatant attempt to intimidate anyone that doesn't agree with them and undermine judicial independence," the two senators wrote in a joint statement.
CBS News has reached out to Grace for comment.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who in social media posts on Sunday and Monday urged the judges to keep Habba in the role, blasted their decision Tuesday.
Blanche accused the judges of "trying to force out" Habba, and serving "a left-wing agenda, not the rule of law."
"When judges act like activists, they undermine confidence in our justice system. Alina is President Trump's choice to lead—and no partisan bench can override that," Blanche wrote.
Habba did not immediately reply to a request for comment by CBS News.
Habba faced an uphill battle to secure Senate confirmation, which was opposed by the state's two Democratic senators.
Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey praised the judges' decision in a social media post Tuesday, noting that Grace has been a federal prosecutor in the state since 2016.
"The people of New Jersey deserve a United States Attorney who will enforce the law without fear or favor, always in pursuit of the public interest and guided by the principles of impartiality and fairness," Booker wrote.
Habba's time in office was marked by clashes with Democrats. Her office charged Newark Mayor Ras Baraka with criminal trespassing and U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver with assault after a May protest at an immigration facility.
The charges against Baraka were dropped, and McIver entered a not guilty plea.
Habba was previously counselor to the president early in his second term. For several years prior, she was a lead attorney on many of his most high-profile civil cases, including a New York state fraud case and a defamation case involving the writer E. Jean Carroll. A judge and a jury in those cases found Mr. Trump liable for about half a billion dollars in damages and disgorgement.
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Time Magazine
14 hours ago
- Time Magazine
Is Donald Trump Named in the Epstein Files?
The Trump Administration has tried—and failed—to put tensions over its handling of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's case to bed for weeks. But they've only continued to escalate as news outlets have reported new information related to President Donald Trump's years-long relationship with Epstein and potential inclusion in files related to the case. The recent controversy ignited after the Department of Justice and FBI issued a memo earlier this month declaring Epstein's death a suicide and denying the existence of a 'client list' of people involved in his alleged sex trafficking activities. The memo contradicted a slew of conspiracy theories surrounding Epstein that have been particularly prominent on the right and had previously been fueled by top Trump Administration officials including FBI Director Kash Patel and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, who in February stated that the rumored 'client list' was 'sitting on my desk right now.' 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White House communications director Steven Cheung referred to it as 'fake news' in a statement to TIME. 'The fact is that the President kicked him out of his club for being a creep,' Cheung said. However, a Trump official told Reuters that the Administration is not denying that Trump's name was mentioned in the files. The Journal's most recent report comes as its parent companies, owner, two reporters, and one of the parent company's CEOs face a libel lawsuit filed by the President in response to an earlier story alleging that Trump was one of dozens of individuals who wrote letters to Epstein for his 50th birthday in 2003. 'Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret,' the letter concluded, according to the media outlet. TIME has not independently verified the reporting. On Wednesday, Rep. Khanna told MSNBC's 'The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell' that he planned on issuing a subpoena for the birthday album, which is in the possession of the Epstein estate. 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In a 2002 interview with New York Magazine, Trump stated that he had known Epstein for around 15 years and referred to him as a 'terrific guy' and 'a lot of fun.' 'It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it — Jeffrey enjoys his social life,' the magazine quoted the President as saying. In 2017, however, the Trump Organization denied that the President had a relationship with Epstein or was aware of his conduct. 'This has all been reported countless times in the press,' Trump Organization attorney Alan Garten told POLITICO. The President has expressed ire at the media's focus on Epstein in recent weeks. 'I had the Greatest Six Months of any President in the History of our Country, and all the Fake News wants to talk about is the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax!' Trump wrote on Truth Social Wednesday. What files have already been released on Epstein and is there a client list? 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16 hours ago
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Judges deny releasing Ghislaine Maxwell grand jury transcripts from cases in New York and Florida
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Fast Company
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