After clashes with AG's top aide, a White House liaison pushing 'loyalty' to Trump at DOJ is reassigned: Sources [View all]
Source: ABC News
February 24, 2025, 10:04 AM
As the Trump administration continues to vet potential candidates for top posts within the Justice Department, a powerful White House intermediary has been pushing to hire candidates that exhibit what he called "exceptional loyalty" to Trump, and his efforts sparked clashes with Attorney General Pam Bondi's top aide, Chad Mizelle, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
The White House intermediary, Paul Ingrassia, complained directly to Trump about Mizelle, the Justice Department's chief of staff, and suggested to the president that Mizelle is hurting Trump's political agenda, sources said. Ingrassia has since been reassigned to work with the Department of Homeland Security, a White House official familiar with the matter told ABC News.
Trump was reelected in November after promising to rid the Justice Department of what he alleged was political bias tainting federal law enforcement. Bondi has echoed that rhetoric, issuing a directive within hours of taking office to establish a "Weaponization Working Group" that she said would review all of the "politicized" investigations previously targeting Trump.
According to Ingrassia's LinkedIn page, he became "President Trump's White House Liaison for DOJ" in January. In private, to White House colleagues, he described himself as Trump's "eyes and ears" at the Justice Department, with significant authority to help interview and select candidates for senior and lower-level positions, sources said.
Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/after-clashes-ags-top-aide-white-house-liaison/story?id=119108504