DOJ's Civil Rights Division Sees Mass Exodus of Attorneys
Lawyers have resigned from the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division en masse as its mission has shifted to promote President Donald Trump's agenda, according to the newly appointed head of the division.
"No one has been fired by me … but what we have made very clear last week in memos to each of the 11 sections in the Civil Rights Division is that our priorities under President Trump are going to be somewhat different than they were under President Biden," Harmeet Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for the DOJ's Civil Rights Division, told conservative commentator Glenn Beck during an appearance on his show at the weekend.
"And then we tell them, these are the President's priorities, this is what we will be focusing on—you know, govern yourself accordingly. And en masse, dozens and now over 100 attorneys decided that they'd rather not do what their job requires them to do."
Harmeet Dhillon prepares for her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on February 26, 2025 in Washington, DC
Harmeet Dhillon prepares for her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on February 26, 2025 in Washington, DCWhy It Matters
The DOJ's civil rights division, founded after the passage of the Civil Rights Act, initially focused on protecting the voting rights of Black Americans. But Congress later expanded its responsibilities to include protecting Americans from discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, sex, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and military status.
But Dhillion reportedly issued a series of memos earlier in April detailing the division would be focusing on priorities laid out in Trump's executive orders, such as the participation of transgender athletes in women's sports, combating antisemitism and ending diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
What To Know
Since Dhillon took over the unit, at least a dozen career attorneys—including those who managed offices investigating police abuse and handled violations of voting and disability rights—were reassigned, Reuters reported earlier this month.
Meanwhile, the flurry of departures accelerated in recent weeks as more employees have accepted a second buyout offer from the Trump administration that allows them to resign and be paid through September. The offer for those who work in the division expired Monday.
There were around 380 lawyers in the civil rights division when Trump returned to office in January, according to The New York Times. The newspaper, citing unofficial estimates of the number of people planning to resign by Monday's deadline, reported the division would soon have about 140 attorneys or possibly even fewer.
The Department of Justice have been contacted for comment through its website.
Dhillon told Beck that she thinks it's "fine" that so many attorneys chose to resign.
"Because we don't want people in the federal government who feel like it's their pet project to go persecute, you know, police departments based on statistical evidence or persecute people praying outside abortion facilities instead of doing violence," she said. "That's not the job here. The job here is to enforce the federal civil rights laws, not woke ideology."
What People Are Saying
Dhillon also told Beck in the interview: "What we now need to do once all the dust settles and people are off the books is we are we are looking at resumes of lawyers who want to do that work. I don't care what their politics are, it is not relevant. I do care that they're willing to take direction and zealously enforce the civil rights of the United States according to the priorities of this president."
Democratic Senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee expressed alarm about the changes and departures in a letter to Dhillon, Attorney General Pam Bondi and DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz.
They said: "We have also heard alarming reports that you authorized a second voluntary buyout for Division employees immediately before issuing the previously mentioned directives. Taken together, these measures appear to be an attempt to cajole career officials at the Division to leave voluntarily in order to fundamentally transform its work."
What's Next
Democrats have called on Dhillon to schedule a briefing for the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on the Constitution on changes to the DOJ's Civil Rights Division since January 20. They have also requested she provide information on the directives issued and an accounting of all personnel-related changes as well as details of the buyout offer issued to employees of the division by May 1.
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