Posted on Tuesday, November 26, 2024

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by Paul Ingrassia

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Attorney Generals are usually considered among the most powerful cabinet secretaries in any presidential administration. For President Trump, his Attorney General is of outsized importance given the historic task at hand: cleaning up the systemic rot that has permeated the Justice Department over the last four years. Once the model for how justice should be administered the world over, over the Biden years Americans witnessed the DOJ’s tragic descent into banana-republicanism, defined by its law enforcement arms being weaponized by bad-faith actors against Donald Trump, his highest profile allies, and conservative political dissidents.  Our Founding Fathers are turning over in their graves by the corruption of justice in the Land of the Free, which has observed kangaroo courts, vindictive prosecutors, and communist judges take the rule of law into their own hands, and silence, censure, and indict those with whom they disagree, or for merely exercising their God-given rights, with near impunity.

The United States was founded as “a government of laws, not of men.”  Hence, the rule of law – and concomitant legitimacy of our political institutions – is integral to the cultivation of ordered liberty and functioning government.  On November 5^th, President-elect Trump was given an irrefutable political mandate by the American people to implement his political agenda.  Atop that agenda is the restoration of the integrity of the legal system – and the return of justice to its original mandate.  There is no doubt, based on the magnitude of the blight that has infected our judicial institutions, that even the most adept Attorney General will have a colossal undertaking on their hands.  The housecleaning needed at the DOJ will be substantial, and it will require an all hands-on-deck approach – and only the best and brightest legal minds to enact.

Thus, in service to that mighty task, the following offers a preliminary agenda for the next Attorney General.  The guiding principle for each of the policies listed is restoring faith in the Justice Department specifically, and rule of law and constitutional governance generally.  The goal must be to put a categorial stop to the political persecutions and lawfare that has roiled this country over the last four years – and to prevent its resumption once Donald Trump leaves office.  The next AG will only achieve this by holding its chief architects accountable to the fullest extent of the law.

This advisory agenda recommends policies to hold bad-faith actors, like Jack Smith, Alvin Bragg, and Fani Willis, accountable while also recommending policies – like pardoning innocent J6 victims – with the intent to restore public confidence in the administration of justice in the country’s highest and most influential law enforcement department. If implemented fully, its authors believe that these policies will go a long way towards redeeming Justice, the cornerstone of American democracy and free government, in both the DOJ and throughout the land:

1. Design New Landing Pages for FBI.gov and Justice.gov.  The first thing Americans should see when they visit these government websites is a clear, no-frills description of every step the new administration has taken to increase transparency, remove deep state obstructionists, eliminate lawless domestic surveillance, and expose the deceit and corruption of the past 12 years.  For example, the first item on FBI.gov’s landing page will be a succinct admission of the FBI’s involvement in January 6th as well as a description of that involvement.  These new website landing pages will disclose all information about the following:
   • All FBI Involvement in the Events of January 6, 2021.
   • All evidence of mistreatment of January 6 prisoners in federal custody.
   • All evidence of government involvement in the “51 intelligence officials letter”
   • Copies of unredacted emails from any government official to any social media company in any way related to the Biden and then Harris presidential campaigns.
   • Copies of all files relating to the Robert Hur investigation of Joe Biden. 
   • Publicly Disclose all FBI Involvement in Russia Gate and surrounding hoaxes.
   • Public Disclosure of Jeffrey Epstein Evidence.  This should include all information regarding his death, his client lists, and the missing Epstein tapes.
   • Updates on all other items set forth below.
2. Specify the Plan to Radically Reform DOJ Culture.  Among other things, this will require re-normalizing formerly long-standing traditions of integrity, honesty, and courage, while focusing on the sworn oath to protect and defend the constitution.  Federal prosecutors and special agents must understand that they cannot resort to lawless and unprecedented maneuvers merely because their supervisors instruct them to do so or because they dislike the political opposition. 
3. Election Integrity Task Force.  Implement aggressive measures to restore public confidence in election procedures.  These measures must include federal guidelines to ensure same-day voting, a return to paper ballots, mandatory Voter ID-requirements, and citizen verification measures become a national standard.  Although the Constitution vests considerable power in the states to set their own election procedures, the federal government can implement a robust incentive structure to align state procedures with federal guidelines.  In addition to that incentive structure, DOJ should establish a task force to investigate election fraud and investigate the various special counsels designed to sabotage President Trump over the last eight years, with the purpose to resolve election fraud once and for all.
   • Stand Up Task Force to Investigate 2020 Election Interference by US Government Officials and Contractors.  This task force should focus on the conspiracy to cover-up the Hunter Biden laptop scandal, including investigations into those within the FBI and intelligence community (and related contractor) who instructed social media companies to suppress the laptop story, communications by and among the “51 intelligence officials” regarding the origins and contents of their public letter, and the CIA approval process to authorize the letter.  Many of these bad actors have violated the Hatch Act (which can be prosecuted under 5 USC §§ 7323 and 7324), 18 USC § 241 (Conspiracy Against Rights, particularly suppression of Americans’ First Amendment rights), 18 USC § 595 (election interference by government employees), 52 USC § 30119 (campaign contributions by government contractors), and other federal crimes. 
   • Appoint United States Attorneys to Investigate 2024 Senate Election Fraud: This will require the appointment of US Attorneys with strong investigative experience to ferret out fraud in the 2024 Senate elections in the Eastern District of Michigan, Northern District of Georgia, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and District of Arizona. 
   • Appoint United States Attorney to Investigate Attempts to Interfere with the 2024 Presidential Election: These investigations can be performed at the United States Attorney level, and should focus on the District of Colorado, District of Maine, and the Western or Eastern Districts of Michigan.  Particular attention should be given to the official acts of the Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, and Maine Secretary of State Shana Bellows, all of whom attempted to deprive citizens of Colorado and Maine of their rights to vote, among other civil rights, by removing Donald Trump’s name from the ballot – a felony prosecutable under 18 USC § 242.  In addition, an investigation should also be opened into Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who disenfranchised Michigan’s voters by keeping RFK Jr.’s name on the ballot despite the fact that he was not running.
   • Revoke Voting Rights Lawsuits. DOJ brought many lawsuits in 2024 the effect of which has been to undermine the integrity of our elections, including lawsuits to prevent states from purging their voter rolls of illegal aliens.  These lawsuits were grounded on an interpretation of federal voting rights laws that subvert our Constitution.  DOJ should never bring any lawsuit the effect of which would be to undermine our constitutional system, like it did in Virginia and elsewhere.
4. Abolish the Civil Rights Division (CRD).  Under the leadership of avowed black supremacist Kristen Clarke, CRD has institutionalized racism in service of far-left political goals. CRD should be abolished, and responsibility for prosecuting civil rights violations returned to the 94 United States Attorneys’ offices. In addition, DOJ must put strict guidelines around the types of crimes that can be prosecuted using the nation’s civil rights laws–they must never again be used to discriminate against disfavored racial groups.
5. Revise DOJ Policy Regarding Use of FISA Warrants.  While revising Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act will require an act of Congress, DOJ can prohibit as a matter of policy the FBI, US Attorneys’ offices, and “main justice” prosecutors from conducting backdoor searches of American citizens’ communications obtained via warrantless Section 702 searches.
6. Prohibit DOJ from Co-Opting Social Media Companies to Suppress Free Speech.  There is no lawful justification for any DOJ personnel (or any federal agency) to instruct or request a private company to suppress the speech of any American. DOJ policy must be revised to state this position clearly. Offenders should be immediately terminated. 
7. Eliminate DOJ Misinformation. The Department should have no role whatsoever in combating or identifying misinformation or disinformation. 
8. Launch New DOJ “Sicario” Task Force.  This task force will have a single purpose – detect and destroy using the full power of the criminal justice system all organized criminal activity tied to the cartels, Latin-American gangs like Tren de Aragua and MS-13, and other pseudo-state actors.
9. Redeploy FBI Agents from Counter Terrorism and Domestic Extremism.  Attorney General Garland repeatedly lied to the American people that an epidemic of white-supremacy and domestic extremism threaten the country. These lies must be exposed. At the same time, FBI agents working on these matters (those who are not fired) should be permanently reassigned to the new Sicario task force. 
10. Revoke Security Clearances.  The President-elect should immediately revoke the security clearances of any person working in the private sector who was appointed by Presidents Biden or Obama and a curated list of others. For example, to the extent any of the “51 former intelligence officials” who sanctified the Hunter Biden laptop as “Russian disinformation” still have security clearances, they must be revoked.   Others, to the extent they retain security clearances, who should receive lifetime revocations include: Jack Smith, John Brennan, James Comey, Peter Strzok, Lisa Page, Andrew McCabe, Michael Hayden, Sally Yates, Bruce & Nellie Ohr, James Clapper, Rod Rosenstein, Victoria Nuland, Bill Barr, Jeff Rosen, Adam Schiff, Andrew Weissman, Norm Eisen, and all 50 signers of October 19, 2020 letter alleging Hunter Biden laptop story was likely “Russian disinformation,” and other senior government officials involved in abetting the fake Russian-collusion narrative over the last eight years.
11. Develop Strict Guidelines for Enforcement of FACE Act.  The Fair Access to Clinics Entrance Act is supposed to protect churches and pro-life pregnancy centers as well as abortion clinics.  However, USDOJ has enforced it primarily to advance left-wing political causes – that is, only in connection with putative violations involving abortion clinics.  By one measure, it has been used 130 times to prosecute offenses against abortion clinics versus 5 against churches / pro-life centers, even though the latter are 22 times more likely to be attacked. 
12. Develop Strict Guidelines for Handling Congressional Investigative Referrals.  DOJ cannot choose to ignore some congressional referrals while zealously prosecuting others.  For example, it chose to prosecute congressional contempt offenses against Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon but not against Eric Holder.  Similarly, USDOJ did not prosecute Congressman Jamaal Bowman even though he intentionally delayed the execution of a law of the United States. These double standards must end. In addition, if prosecuting these types of offenses, there should be a DOJ presumption of no jail time. 
13. Develop Strict Guidelines Around “Political Cases.”  DOJ must develop new policies regarding investigating and prosecuting political figures.  For example, DOJ should not be permitted to charge any likely major presidential candidate within two years of the next election and any likely major senatorial candidate within one year of the next election.  In addition, DOJ should require a unanimous vote from any grand jury deliberating on the criminal conduct of any major presidential candidate. 
14. Eliminate Left Wing Identity Group Subversion.  DOJ’s offices and the United States Attorneys’ offices (and LinkedIn profiles, websites, and other public-facing platforms) routinely advance and celebrate left wing political goals, including things like Pride Month, Indigenous Peoples Day, and other subversive propaganda. In the interest of maintaining political neutrality and nonpartisanship, DOJ policy should explicitly prohibit all DOJ personnel from promoting or advancing in their official capacity these types of political activities. 
15. Eliminate DOJ’s Lawless DEIA Program.  It is unlawful for the United States government to discriminate on the basis of race.  DOJ routinely violates this requirement with things like the Department’s public commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (“DEI”) and Accessibility, and its support for Affirmative Action and other hiring and prosecutorial practices based on “equity.”  These policies must be disbanded and a public apology for DOJ’s lawlessness in this regard should be added to the new landing page (see item 1). 
16. Eliminate DOJ Consent Decrees with States and Municipalities.  The consent decree process should be abandoned, all consent decrees immediately terminated, and the Department should play no further role in evaluating the conduct of state or local authorities relating to civil rights, which in its latter-day formulation, is merely used as a pretext for prosecuting political dissidents.
17. Ramp Up Prosecution of Immigration Related Offenses.  This should include investigation into those who harbor illegal aliens, knowingly employ them, or smuggle them into the country (8 USC § 1324) and can include prosecutions of any state official – including Governors and Mayors that have declared certain locations to be “sanctuary states/cities” to house dangerous illegal aliens who attempts to impede the enforcement of federal law.
18. Open Select Criminal Investigations.
    • John Doe DOJ Officials: Election interference and intimidation in violation of 18 USC §§ 241, 595 for letter sent to Elon Musk regarding pre-election pledge.
    • Anthony Blinken: Election interference for his role in developing the 51 intelligence officials letter. 
    • Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold and Maine Secretary of State Shana Bellows: Deprivation of civil rights under color of law in violation of 18 USC § 242 for attempting to deny the citizens of Colorado and Maine their right to vote.
    • Capitol Police Lt. Michael Byrd for the murder of Ashli Babbitt in violation of 18 USC § 1111.
    • Liz Cheney: Witness tampering in violation of 18 USC § 1512 for her actions to corruptly influence the testimony of witness Cassidy Hutchinson.
    • Jane Doe FEMA Officials: Violation of the civil rights of Trump supporters who were also survivors of Hurricane Helene in Florida, North Carolina, and elsewhere.  18 USC § 242. 
    • John Doe Prison Officials: Mistreatment of January 6th prisoners in Washington DC in violation 18 USC § 242.
    • Fani Willis and Nathan Wade: For attempting to deny Donald Trump and other defendants in Fulton County their right to due process through perjury, conspiracy, and other state offenses, in violation of 18 USC §§ 241 and § 242.
    • Letitia James and Alvin Bragg: For commencing a witch-hunt against Donald Trump, denying him of fundamental rights, like Due Process and the presumption of innocence, along the way.  And for turning New York lawcourts into kangaroo tribunals, whereby egregious charges, based on a malicious interpretation of the law – as in the civil case that valued Mar-a-Lago at $18 million – were cooked up for the deliberate attempt to interfere with the election and sully the reputation of the would-be President-elect.
    • General Mark Milley.  Treason in violation of 18 USC 2381, for giving aid and comfort to the enemies of the United States in connection with his lawless decision to impart crucial strategic information to the Chinese.  Moreover, under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), Milley’s conduct likely constitutes offenses like sedition or undermining lawful civil authority, given the allegations of usurping presidential command authority. These actions could well constitute court-martial offenses if proven in a military tribunal.
19. Send DOJ “Dear Colleague” Letters to Would be Immigration Offenders. For example, JB Pritzker threatened to impede the enforcement of federal law and to harbor illegal aliens.  He should be reminded that to do so is a federal crime for which he can be prosecuted. 
20. Send DOJ “Dear Colleague” Letters to University Admissions’ Office.  The Supreme Court made clear in SFFA v. Harvard that discrimination on the basis of race in university admissions is unlawful.  Left-wing admissions officers continue to ignore the Supreme Court. DOJ needs to make clear to university officials that the Department will investigate violations of this requirement, including by bringing civil cases against specific officials. 
21. Institute Formal OPR Referrals / Bar Licensing Authority Referrals. For all federal prosecutors involved in the prosecutions of Donald Trump. Top of the list is Jack Smith, who opened an unlawful and unprecedented political prosecution against a former and future President on totally and completely baseless grounds. 
22. Pardons and Commutations.
    • January 6^th Pardons: Electoral Justice Cases: (a) commute the sentences to “time served” for most January 6th protestors already sentenced and still incarcerated such as Enrique Tarrio; (b) pardon certain January 6th  protestors on a case-by-case basis; (c) on a case-by-case basis, dismiss ongoing electoral justice cases or offer plea deals to misdemeanor offenses for those who destroyed physical property.  For the Office of Pardon Attorney, appoint someone in the mold of John Pierce, founder of the NCLU, and a tried and true J6 defense attorney, who understands the cases and system well, and has immense and firsthand knowledge of institutional abuses.
    • FACE Act Offenses.  Pardon any person convicted of a non-violent FACE act offense.  Alternatively, commute all sentences to time served.
    • Contempt Proceedings: Pardon Steve Bannon and Peter Navarro.  Encourage Congress to establish a special commission to investigate the unlawfully constituted J6 commission and release all outstanding video and other evidence that exists – and exonerates – those involved in the January 6^th, 2021, event.  Enact legislation that forbids partisan commissions, with flout both congressional rules and precedent as the J6 commission so egregiously did, from holding innocent citizens in contempt.
    • Defamation Cases: Implement legislation to prevent the persecution of political dissidents, like Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani, under the pretense of defamation law.  It should not be a crime, for instance, for a private citizen to opine on a primarily political matter – i.e., evidence of corruption or fraud affecting federal elections.  Moreover, under defamation law, even a defamed individual should not be entitled to damages egregiously and unjustifiably beyond the values of their reputations, as occurred with the case of E. Jean Carroll or the Georgia election workers in the Giuliani case.  The administration should work to overturn New York Times Co. v. Sullivan.
23. Develop Legal Guidance for Handling District Court Injunctions.  Unfortunately, many of the nation’s federal district court judges are partisans eager to enforce the political goals of left-wing activists.  These activists, in turn, are adept at “forum shopping” for lawless judges.  This is how, for example, a single district court judge in Hawaii can enjoin a nationwide immigration policy, as happened in Trump v. Hawaii.  Legal justification for Trump to sidestep these rogue and lawless district court injunctions, which invariably will arise, must be developed. A formal Attorney General opinion should follow.

Paul Ingrassia, a graduate of Fordham University and Cornell Law School, is an Attorney; Communications Director of the NCLU; a two-time Claremont Fellow, and is on the Board of Advisors of the NYYR Club and the Italian American Civil Rights League. He writes a widely read Substack that is regularly posted on Truth Social by President Trump. Follow Paul on X @PaulIngrassia, Substack, Truth Social, Instagram, and Rumble.

TJ Harker is the General Counsel of a Knoxville, Tennessee, company. Until recently, he was a federal prosecutor, where he investigated and tried national white-collar fraud and espionage matters, including two of the largest criminal trials in the country in 2021. He writes at Amicus Republicae. 

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AMAC or AMAC Action.