The Justice Department has reassigned key senior officials across multiple divisions as part of a leadership shakeup ahead of the expected confirmation of Pam Bondi as Attorney General. Among those moved to other positions inside the department is Bruce Swartz, longtime head of the DOJ office of international affairs, which handles extradition matters. As many as 20 officials have been reassigned, reports the Associated Press. Another affected official is George Toscas, a veteran deputy assistant attorney general in the national security division who, in addition to helping oversee major terrorism and espionage investigations, has been a key supervisor in politically charged probes over the last decade including Hillary Clinton's handling of classified information and President Trump’s hoarding of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.
Though it is common for a new administration to appoint its own political hires at the top of the Justice Department, it is unusual or career lawyers to be reassigned. They serve the department across administrations and typically retain their positions even when control of the department changes hands. The moves could foreshadow additional changes given Trump’s keen interest in the Justice Department, which investigated him in his first term via a special counsel and indicted him twice last year in separate cases that never reached trial. A key veteran prosecutor in the classified documents case, Jay Bratt, retired this month.
Trump’s fury over the investigations has raised alarms that he could seek to use the law enforcement powers of the department to pursue retaliation against his adversaries.
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