The US Justice Department has undergone a major leadership shake-up following the Republican Party’s losses in the midterm elections. Since the midterms, three senior officials have resigned within two days.
REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo (REUTERS)
Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the departures of Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon, Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Eisenberg and US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Jason Reding Quinones.
The resignations come days after Democrats won control of the US House in the midterm elections, dealing a significant political setback to President Donald Trump and the Republican Party. The departures have fueled questions about the administration’s legal and political strategy heading into the remainder of Trump’s term.
Also read: Democrats prepare for fight on immigration as Trump promotes Stephen Miller after midterms defeat
Dhillon, Eisenberg and Quinones among departing officials
Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Thursday that he had accepted the resignation of Harmeet Dhillon, who served as Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.
Dhillon submitted her resignation in October but agreed to remain in office until after the midterm elections, according to her resignation letter cited by Reuters.
As head of the Civil Rights Division, Dhillon played a central role in the Justice Department’s efforts to obtain voter registration lists from about 30 states before the midterm elections. The requests drew legal and political scrutiny and did not achieve the administration’s desired outcome.
On Friday, Blanche announced two additional departures. John Eisenberg resigned as Assistant Attorney General for National Security, while Jason Reding Quinones stepped down as US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.
Quinones confirmed his departure in a statement posted on X.
“I submitted my resignation to the President as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, effective today,” he wrote. He thanked President Trump, Justice Department colleagues and law enforcement officers for their service and described leading the office as “the privilege of a lifetime.”
Also read: US issues fresh warning for Americans across Middle East over Houthi attacks, reported Iran threats
Reshuffle follows politically charged Justice Department tenure
Quinones oversaw investigations involving former intelligence officials whom Trump accused of attempting to undermine his presidency. His office handled several politically sensitive matters during his tenure.
The administration’s pressure campaigns against Cuba and Venezuela were also led by Quiñones’ office, which also filed criminal charges against former Cuban President Raul Castro. Alex Saab, a businessman close to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro who was deported in May, is being prosecuted by Quiñones’ administration.
Eisenberg’s National Security Division was also involved in some of DOJ’s more controversial acts, such as an extraordinary raid on a Washington Post reporter’s house as part of a leak probe, despite Eisenberg’s generally low profile.
In a secret court established in 1996 to deal with accused “alien terrorists,” the division assisted in bringing the first-ever case to deport a lawful permanent resident from Afghanistan who had not been charged with any crime.
Neither Blanche nor the Justice Department indicated that the resignations were directly tied to the Republican election losses. However, the announcements came within days of the midterm results