Like him or not, President Trump is not a man who comes to the table without a plan…
In business, sometimes the dead wood must be cleared out so commerce can transpire fluidly, cohesively, and prosperously. In government, similar principles apply, and the business at hand is unparalleled loyalty to the commander-in-chief and passion for the public service mission. But when the mission is like a catamaran with two sides (Democrats and Republicans) connected as one, and one when one side may lean left too much, imbalance is the end result.
With our current Republican-led government sailing for more clear waters with President Trump in the wheelhouse and his vice-captains (cabinet members) navigating the currents, the outgoing Democratic president left some of his crew behind. Are recent leaks part and parcel borne of some of these residual Obama appointees? Were there saboteurs among the group? Akin to barnacles on a boat’s hull, were Obama-appointed attorneys creating drag at the Department of Justice (DoJ)? If that is what the Trump presidency deemed, then these hitch-hiking cling-ons must be scraped away so the vessel can sail accordingly.
That is exactly what US Attorney General Jeff Sessions set in motion on March 10, 2017.
I envision that AG Sessions got real close to pointing a finger and saying the proverbial Trump-esque “You’re fired!” Not quite, but close. It was actually acting deputy attorney general Dana Boente through whom Mr. Sessions requested the resignations of 46 holdover US attorneys working for DoJ. One can only imagine the discussion between President Trump and AG Sessions pertaining to the steady stream of subterfuge lately, and how best to resolve it. Logically, the Obama holdovers were on the chopping block, and time will determine if the DoJ sieve netted any errant particulate.
Naturally, no leader wants someone on the payroll who is not going to work for him or, more applicably, someone who is working against him, his mission, and his objectives and, therefore, American citizens to whom he swore a Constitutional covenant.
Just like cops and just like US presidents, federal prosecutors take an oath to serve the tenets of the Constitution. In that context, there is no room for picking and choosing parts to enforce while ignoring others. Former acting US Attorney General Sally Q. Yates found that out, which is why she is now “former.” President Trump promptly fired her for declining to enforce some of his executive orders. While Sessions was engaged in confirmation hearings, Yates admonished DoJ attorneys to ignore President Trump’s immigration enforcement initiatives. Her government employment ended swiftly.
External Minions and Soros Money
A few days prior to Friday’s purposed purge of the 46 federal prosecutors, protestors outside several federal justice buildings across the nation repeatedly chanted for AG Sessions’ resignation; their jutted signs read “Lock him up! Lock him up!” It appears that George Soros, the clandestine Lord of underground shenanigans inflicted upon the Trump administration, once again financed an anti-Sessions movement to march on Capitol Hill and demand his resignation for alleged lying under oath during recent confirmation hearings.
In total, the USAG’s office employs 93 attorneys general across 94 districts. As of this writing, of the 46 Obama-appointed federal law enforcement officers remaining, a few holdovers are sticking around. President Trump nominated Rod Rosenstein as his Deputy Attorney General. He also declined accepting resignation of acting Attorney General Dana Boente. Albeit implicitly favoring a dynamo chief federal prosecutor in New York City named Preet Bharara, who reportedly refused to tender his resignation, President Trump nevertheless fired him this afternoon. I smell a back-story brewing.
Senator’s Baseless Rebuke
In a harsh, baseless rebuke of Sessions clearing out Democratic-appointed prosecutors, Senator Chuck Schumer (D–NY) lashed out and rendered wild theories suggesting DoJ has effectively weakened the justice process (case development and processing) in asking those 46 federal law enforcers to resign. Despite Senator Schumer’s over-inflated concerns, rest assured that DoJ is not standing with its pants down, listless and ineffective. Prosecuting cases under the tutelage of the 93 US Attorneys are scores of deputies and assistants taking up the justice mission (caseload) who are diligent, acute, and qualified litigators. Nothing is going to backlog as far as federal justice administration is concerned. Regardless of Senator Schumer’s curveballs and insinuations, the federal government has a sizable bench whose capable players are in motion, their long arms of the law dutifully prosecuting.
Furthermore, like him or not, President Trump is not a man who comes to the table or arrives at decisions without a plan. For Senator Schumer to publicize such a claim is nothing more than the usual Democrat dust-up so chronic since the Trump Administration came to occupy the White House.
Philosophical Differences
Ultimately, the house-cleaning at DoJ boils down to a mismatch in philosophical stances. As exemplified when President Trump fired Sally Yates for refusing to enforce his executive orders regarding immigration, when pieces do not align with a leader’s values, it is necessary to scrape the barnacles…to rid yourself from things potentially preventing progress. And that is what this move is all about. As Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores clarified, the request for the 46 resignation letters is to “ensure a uniform transition” for the newly-minted Trump presidency.
Despite the hubbub from varying corners of the political arena, this request for resignations is not unorthodox; presidents of both party lines have historically conducted the exact same measures for the exact same purpose. Former President Clinton did it, which included then-US Attorney Jeff Sessions being asked to resign by Attorney General Janet Reno. President Trump did not script this game-plan, but he is on the page others before him were on, doing what he thinks is best for his Justice arm to effectively perform its function judiciously and without potential drag.
Stephen Owsinski is a Senior OpsLens Contributor and retired law enforcement officer whose career included assignments in the Uniformed Patrol Division and Field Training Officer (FTO) unit. He is currently a researcher and writer.
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