Newsletter: How today’s DOJ became ‘unrecognizable’
Director’s note on the DOJ
From CEIR Executive Director David Becker
I had the privilege of working for three Attorneys General—two Republican appointees and one Democratic appointee—during my time as a trial attorney in the Voting Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. While they had some understandable differences in political and legal philosophy, all were dedicated public servants who respected the importance of an independent DOJ and the lawyers that comprise it. Based on current DOJ appointees’ recent actions and statements, those past Attorneys General wouldn’t recognize what the current DOJ has become.
Former acting US Attorney for DC—and current “captain” of the DOJ’s “weaponization group”—said last week that “If [opponents] can be charged, we’ll charge them. But if they can’t be charged, we will name them. And we will name them, and in a culture that respects shame, they should be people that are ashamed…. That’s the way things work.”
This is NOT the way things work, nor has it ever been. The DOJ exists to enforce the laws of the United States, as represented in the Constitution. In administrations of both parties, the DOJ holds itself bound to the rule of law and the ethical constraints of the bar. It brings only those cases it can prove in court, under the rules of evidence and bound by due process. If the DOJ cannot make a case because the evidence is not there, it does not resort to petty character assassination on behalf of a president that may seek vindication.
The DOJ is not the president’s law firm. The president has lawyers—that’s the reason the White House counsel’s office exists. The DOJ is OUR law firm, the American people’s lawyers. It exists to protect and defend the American people pursuant to the laws of the land. For over 200 years, that has been its one and only mandate and purpose. If any of the Attorneys General I’ve worked for, or indeed, any who served in prior administrations, had heard a DOJ lawyer threaten citizens with public shaming in the absence of facts or law to support a claim, the lawyer would have been summarily disciplined. That current appointees are being rewarded for such statements demonstrates the weakening of our institutions in ways that we have not seen before.
‘Highly partisan power grab’ results in removal of head of NC Board of Elections
Last year, the North Carolina General Assembly stripped the Democratic governor of the authority to appoint members to the North Carolina Board of Elections and chairs to county elections boards. It was a shocking move that made North Carolina the only state to transfer that responsibility to the state auditor, a Republican.
The new GOP-majority board met this month and voted to replace the current executive director, Karen Brinson Bell. While it is not unusual for a new partisan majority to replace the executive director, the circumstances under which the GOP gained that majority are unique. Brinson Bell guided elections in the state through the COVID pandemic and Hurricane Helene and is highly regarded by her colleagues throughout the country, having recently been elected to head the National Association of State Election Directors (NASED).
CEIR Executive Director David Becker told the Associated Press that the “highly partisan power grab…resulted in the removal of one of the most highly respected election officials in the country.”
Becker addresses FL election officials
CEIR’s David Becker spoke at a convening of Florida Supervisors of Elections, where he presented to nearly 500 attendees on federal actions that may have implications for election officials. In this environment of uncertainty, CEIR continues its dedication to working closely with election officials throughout the country.
EOLDN team travels the country to recruit attorneys, spread the word to election officials
CEIR’s Election Official Legal Defense Network (EOLDN) is always spreading the word about the pro bono legal support available to election officials, and this month was no exception. The EOLDN team traveled to San Francisco for the ABA/NLADA Equal Justice Conference where they met with potential attorney volunteers and legal service organizations from all over the country.