Former top FBI official fired from Trump's DOJ gets his pension back after lengthy legal dispute

Efforts by former President Donald Trump to punish a perceived political foe were reversed by the Biden administration.

"Hours before he was scheduled to retire in 2018, Andrew G. McCabe, then the F.B.I.'s deputy director, was fired by the Justice Department, depriving him of his pension and prompting cheers from President Donald J. Trump, who had been hounding him over his role in the Russia investigation," The New York Timesreports. "On Thursday, the department reversed Mr. McCabe's firing, settling a lawsuit he filed asserting that he was dismissed for political reasons."

McCabe will receive approximately $200,000 in pension payments the DOJ now says he should have received.

"In addition, the Justice Department agreed to expunge any mention of his firing from F.B.I. personnel records. The agreement even made clear that he will receive the cuff links given to senior executives and a plaque with his mounted F.B.I. credentials and badge," the newspaper reported.

McCabe issued a statement praising the reversal.

"Politics should never play a role in the fair administration of justice and Civil Service personnel decisions," McCabe said. "I hope that this result encourages the men and women of the FBI to continue to protect the American people by standing up for the truth and doing their jobs without fear of political retaliation."

The law firm Arnold & Porter, which represented McCabe, will receive more than $500,000 for its legal expenses.

McCabe was fired by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions.