In a sharp display of the Justice Department’s new rhythm under President Donald Trump, federal prosecutors have brought charges against Democratic Congresswoman LaMonica McIver after a tense encounter at an immigration detention center — signaling an unmistakable willingness to pursue Trump’s political adversaries with force and spectacle.
The acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, Alina Habba — once a trusted legal foot soldier for Trump — announced charges against McIver on Monday, stemming from a May 9 standoff in Newark. According to federal filings, the congresswoman allegedly shoved one agent, grabbed another, and attempted to block the arrest of Democratic Newark Mayor Ras Baraka during what lawmakers described as an official oversight visit.
One charge was dropped — that against Baraka — but McIver remains in the crosshairs, accused of assault and obstruction. She calls the entire episode “absurd,” branding the prosecution as a political stunt. “I was there to do my job,” she said on CNN. “This is our mandate. This is what oversight looks like.”
But in Trump’s second presidency, oversight may come at a price.
This isn’t just a dust-up at a detention facility. It’s a chapter in a broader shift — one where prosecutorial muscle is flexed not quietly behind courtroom doors, but in front of television cameras and partisan audiences. The Justice Department, once accused by Trump of weaponizing the law against him, is now accused of doing precisely that — but in the other direction.
Habba, who has made no secret of her disdain for Trump critics, brushed aside McIver’s objections with the same fervor that once defined Trump’s rallies. “Running their mouths,” she quipped on Fox News. “There’s no grandstanding that saves you when you break the law.”
A federal magistrate, unimpressed with the public theatrics, warned Habba to tread carefully when speaking about an active case. But that hasn’t stopped the flow of inflammatory rhetoric — or the Department’s apparent appetite for high-profile clashes with Democratic figures.
Video of the confrontation, released by the Department of Homeland Security, shows what officials characterized as lawmakers “storming” the facility. McIver’s attorney, former U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman, argued the agents had inflamed the situation, not the congresswoman. “In court, facts matter,” he said pointedly.
The move to prosecute McIver fits into a growing pattern: political foes facing charges while allies of the president celebrate their downfall online. From the arrest of a Wisconsin judge to threats against a New York state attorney general who dared take on Trump in civil court, the DOJ’s moves increasingly resemble a partisan chess match, not blind justice.
Even FBI Director Kash Patel, another Trump loyalist, fanned the flames, hinting on Fox News at an ongoing probe into Letitia James — the New York official who recently won a $454 million civil fraud judgment against Trump.
Meanwhile, Trump signed an executive order last month targeting a former cybersecurity official who publicly debunked his 2020 election claims, instructing the DOJ to investigate.
This is the climate in which McIver finds herself: a Democratic congresswoman, charged during an official visit, accused by Trump-world figures of lawbreaking — all while defending what she describes as routine congressional oversight.
Behind the formal charges and public statements lies a more unsettling undercurrent: faith in prosecutorial neutrality is faltering. “We’re in a deeply divided time,” said Thea Johnson of Rutgers Law School. “And a lot of people no longer believe these decisions are being made in the public interest.”
In the courtroom, McIver may still get her day. But in the court of public opinion, the case is already on fire.
