The Justice Department under President Donald Trump is firing more than a dozen officials who assisted special counsel Jack Smith in prosecuting Trump before he won the 2024 election, according to a Justice Department spokesperson.
Acting Attorney General James McHenry sent a termination letter to each official, the spokesperson confirmed Monday.
“Acting Attorney General James McHenry made this decision because he did not believe these officials could be trusted to faithfully implement the President’s agenda because of their significant role in prosecuting the President,” a separate department official told USA TODAY in a statement.
Ahead of his November election victory, Trump told radio show host Hugh Hewitt that he planned to fire Smith. The special counsel led two prosecutions against Trump that have been dropped in the wake of Trump’s election, one alleging Trump unlawfully tried to overturn the 2020 election results and a second alleging he mishandled classified documents after his first presidential term.
Smith resigned earlier this month, ahead of Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration. In a report on the election-interference case that he submitted to then-Attorney General Merrick Garland before stepping down, Smith argued that there was enough evidence to convict Trump.
Several Justice Department officials have also been reassigned in the wake of Trump’s return to office in order to help align the department with the administration’s priorities, especially on immigration.
(This story had been updated to add additional information.)
