Pam Bondi fires US justice department's top ethics adviser
Joseph Tirrell, who had served as the head of the justice department's ethics office, since 2023, revealed he had been fired in a post on LinkedIn. He shared Bondi's letter to him, which misspelled his name and did not give a reason for his termination.
Neither Tirrell nor the justice department returned a request for comment.
'My public service is not over, and my career as a Federal civil servant is not finished,' Tirrell wrote in the post. 'I took the oath at 18 as a Midshipman to 'support and defend the constitution of the United States'. I have taken that oath at least five more times since then. That oath did not come with the caveat that I need only support the constitution when it is easy or convenient.'
Tirrell was responsible for reviewing financial disclosures and other matters related to Bondi and other top officials in the justice department, according to Bloomberg Law. He oversaw a team of about 30 people that ensured the department's ethical guidelines were being followed.
Tirrell's firing comes as Bondi has begun firing career employees connected to Jack Smith's investigation into Trump. Those firings have included career prosecutors as well as support staff. The firings also come as Ed Martin, a prominent defender of January 6 rioters, was chosen to lead a working group in the department investigating so-called weaponization of officials who investigated Trump.
It's unclear if Tirrell's dismissal is related to January 6-related terminations. Earlier this year, Tirrell signed off on $140,000 worth of free legal services given to Smith before he resigned, according to Politico.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
19 minutes ago
- Reuters
US, Russia plan truce deal that would cement Putin's gains in Ukraine, Bloomberg reports
Aug 8 (Reuters) - Washington and Moscow are aiming to reach a deal to halt the war in Ukraine that would lock in Russia's occupation of territory seized during its military invasion, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. U.S. and Russian officials are working towards an agreement on territories for a planned summit meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin as early as next week, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters could not immediately verify the details included in the report.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Melania Trump celebrates as Democratic strategist apologizes and removes parts of podcast that alleged Epstein connection
Melania Trump celebrated after Democratic strategist James Carville took down parts of a podcast episode that alleged a connection between her and Jeffrey Epstein, following involvement from the first lady 's lawyer. At the start of Thursday's episode of his podcast, 'Politics War Room,' Carville issued an apology, saying his team removed some comments from last week's episode and took down an accompanying video after hearing from the first lady's attorney. 'After the episode, we received a letter from Melania Trump's lawyer. He took issue with our title of one of those YouTube videos from that episode and a couple of comments I made about the first lady,' Carville said. 'We took a look at what they complained about, and we took down the video and edited out those comments from the episode. I also take back these statements and apologize.' The video had been titled: 'The Epstein Connection: Trump & Melania.' It's no longer available on YouTube. The first lady's X account was updated Thursday with a post about the video's removal, sharing a screenshot from the since-removed clip, with a big red X over it, alongside Carville's written apology. Her social media post has been liked 17,000 times, as of Friday morning. The Independent has contacted the White House for comment on the removal of parts of the podcast. 'First Lady Melania Trump's attorneys are actively ensuring immediate retractions and apologies by those who spread malicious, defamatory falsehoods. The true account of how the First Lady met President Trump is in her best-selling book, Melania,' a spokesperson for the first lady's office told The Hill. Last week, legal pressure from Melania Trump's attorney also led to an apology and retraction by The Daily Beast after the site posted an article about the first lady and Epstein. The article can no longer be found on the outlet's website. An editor's note now appears in the article's place. 'After this story was published, The Beast received a letter from First Lady Melania Trump's attorney challenging the headline and framing of the article. After reviewing the matter, the Beast has taken down the article and apologizes for any confusion or misunderstanding,' it reads. Before her Thursday post about Carville, the last thing Melania Trump's X account posted was a link to an article about the Daily Beast removing its piece. There has been ongoing speculation over the so-called 'Epstein Files' ever since the Justice Department released a July 6 memo which concluded that no further investigation was warranted. It reiterated earlier official reports that the convicted sex offender died by suicide, and also stated there was no evidence to support the existence of a 'client list' of high-profile individuals involved in his alleged sex trafficking. The memo was disappointing to many, who had anticipated more revelations around the case. Attorney General Pam Bondi had previously said she had a 'truckload' of information to review on the case, and even suggested the 'client list' was sitting on her desk. She released 'Phase 1' of the files in February, most of which was publicly available information. Members of Trump's MAGA following as well as lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have called for heightened transparency around the Epstein case. The president had been friendly with Epstein in the 1990s and early 2000s, with photos capturing them together at parties. Their friendship dissolved around the mid-2000s. After Epstein's arrest on sex trafficking charges in 2019, the president told reporters he hadn't spoken to him in 15 years. The president has repeatedly called Epstein a "creep." Last month, Trump revealed that he had ended his friendship with Epstein after he 'stole' young female employees from his private club. A Mar-a-Lago member told the Miami Herald that Trump had Epstein kicked out in 2007 after the financier "harassed the daughter of a member.' The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump made a 50th birthday card for Epstein in 2003 that included a sexually suggestive drawing and a mention that they shared a 'secret.' Trump has vehemently denied making the card and sued the newspaper and its owners for defamation in a $10 billion lawsuit. Trump has never been formally accused of wrongdoing or charged with any crime in connection with the Epstein case.
North Wales Chronicle
an hour ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Justice Department and FBI sued for access to records on Jeffrey Epstein probe
The legal organisation Democracy Forward is seeking records related to senior administration officials' communication about Epstein documents and any regarding correspondence between Epstein and President Donald Trump. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, appears to the be first of its kind. The group says it submitted requests under the Freedom of Information Act for the records related to communications about the case in late July that have not yet been fulfilled. 'The court should intervene urgently to ensure the public has access to the information they need about this extraordinary situation,' said Skye Perryman, the president and chief executive of the Democratic-aligned group. The federal government often shields records related to criminal investigations from public view. Democracy Forward has filed dozens of lawsuits against Mr Trump's Republican administration, challenging a range of policies and the president's executive orders. The case has been subject to heightened public focus since the Justice Department said last month it would not release additional documents from the case. The decision sparked frustration and anger among online sleuths, conspiracy theorists and elements of Mr Trump's base who had hoped to see proof of a government cover-up. The Trump administration has sought to unseal grand jury transcripts, though that has been denied by a judge in Florida. US District Judge Robin Rosenberg said the request to release grand jury documents from 2005 and 2007 did not meet any of the exceptions under federal law that could make them public. A similar request for the work of a different grand jury is pending in New York. The House Oversight Committee has also subpoenaed the Justice Department for files on the investigation, part of a congressional probe that legislators believe may show links to Mr Trump and other former top officials. Since Epstein's 2019 death in a New York jail cell as he awaited trial on sex-trafficking charges, conservative conspiracists have stoked theories about what information investigators gathered on Epstein and who else knew about his sexual abuse of teenage girls. Mr Trump has denied prior knowledge of Epstein's crimes and claimed he cut off their relationship long ago, and he has repeatedly tried to move past the Justice Department's decision not to release a full accounting of the investigation, but legislators from both major political parties have refused to let it go.
