'It’s just wild': Inside Trump’s major DOJ 'purge'

28 January

After President Donald Trump fired "more than a dozen" prosecutors on Department of Justice Special Counsel Jack Smith's team Monday, several of the agency's officials shared a peak into the aftermath with Politico.

The news outlet reports, "POLITICO spoke with more than a dozen current and former DOJ officials for this article, most of whom were granted anonymity because of fears of" consequences from Trump.

"It feels like a non-violent war. It’s just wild. Everybody’s a sitting duck and these people have no power or control over the situation," a DOJ career employee told Politico.

"People are just in a state of shock and devastated. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen … Nothing that happened during the first Trump administration came anywhere close to this," the person added.

"It’s got to be among the most demoralizing moments in the history of the Department of Justice,” an-ex DOJ official told Politico.

"It is a flat-out purge of individuals who this administration must view either of suspect loyalty or have worked on matters they just did not like," the former official emphasized. "We are in the early phases of what to me is just looking like a wholesale politically inspired demolition of the Department of Justice in key places."

Furthermore, Politico notes, "Government-wide directives the administration issued calling on agencies to 'identify all employees on probationary periods' have led to some panic among DOJ personnel who’ve been at the agency for less than two years and lack most civil service protections."

A DOJ career staffer emphasized the "probation announcement that has people completely terrified."

Politico's full report is available here.

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