In a sweeping move to reshape the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Trump administration has reassigned several top career officials in key divisions, signaling a sharp shift in focus toward immigration enforcement and other priorities. According to multiple sources, at least 15 experienced staff members across the DOJ’s national security and criminal divisions have been removed from their positions and reassigned, often to roles with diminished influence.
One notable reassignment involves George Toscas, a senior counterintelligence attorney and deputy assistant attorney general in the national security division. Toscas, who played a significant role in high-profile investigations, including the decision to search Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence for classified documents, has been reassigned to a newly created Office of Sanctuary Cities Enforcement. Other key figures, such as Eun Young Choi and Bruce Swartz, have also been reassigned. Swartz, a DOJ veteran with over 30 years of experience, has been moved to a subordinate role in an office he once oversaw.
The reassignments appear to skirt federal protections for career officials by transferring them to other positions within the department, leaving the officials to choose between staying in reduced roles or exiting the agency. Critics argue that this strategy undermines institutional expertise, with David Laufman, a former senior DOJ official, describing the moves as the “dismembering of a core cadre of nonpartisan, institutional experience.”
The national security division, which typically relies on career officials to maintain consistency and institutional memory, has been particularly affected. Former officials have noted the unprecedented nature of these reassignments, which come just as Trump takes office, and speculate that career positions are being cleared to make way for political appointees.
The changes coincide with broader tensions between Trump and the DOJ, rooted in long-standing accusations by the former president and his allies of bias and unfair investigations, including those related to Russia’s interference in the 2016 election. Trump’s focus on immigration enforcement is reflected in the creation of the sanctuary cities office, which aims to bolster federal efforts to enforce immigration laws.
The Justice Department has declined to comment on the reassignments, which also extend to other areas of the department, including its immigration courts. The moves come ahead of the confirmation of Trump’s attorney general nominee, Pam Bondi, and other top appointees, raising concerns among legal experts about their timing and implications for the department’s independence.
For now, James McHenry, a veteran immigration enforcement official, is serving as acting attorney general. However, the abrupt shake-up has alarmed many former DOJ officials, who warn that dismantling the department’s career leadership could compromise its ability to protect national security and maintain the rule of law.
