Two more names have quietly disappeared from the halls of the U.S. Justice Department—individuals once tied to the federal prosecution efforts against Donald Trump. The silent shake-up, confirmed by multiple sources, brings the total number of ousted staff connected to Trump-related investigations to 17.
This latest round saw the dismissal of a lawyer once embedded in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s team, a figure also previously involved in the prosecution of Capitol rioters from January 6, 2021. Alongside them, a staffer in a supporting role was also shown the door. Both had since been reassigned to different DOJ divisions, but that offered no insulation.
The hand behind the axe? Attorney General Pam Bondi, say insiders.
January marked the first major wave: 14 attorneys dismissed in a single stroke. April followed with the quiet removal of a public affairs veteran who had been the voice of Smith’s office. Now, June adds two more casualties to this slow-drip purge.
Publicly, the Department maintains silence. No press releases. No comments.
The backdrop, however, is thunderous. Donald Trump, now deep into his campaign trail, has made no secret of his ambition to settle scores and reshape federal institutions he believes were weaponized against him. Despite repeated denials from Smith’s team about political bias, the optics of these terminations suggest a sharp and purposeful realignment within the DOJ’s inner machinery.
Whether these moves are administrative house-cleaning or retribution masked in protocol, one thing is clear: the Justice Department is no longer the same agency that once pursued Trump in court. It’s being retooled, and fast.
