Attorney General

Matt Gaetz attorney general confirmation was in doubt ahead of withdrawal

Former congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) has withdrawn from consideration to become attorney general in a new Trump administration, he announced Thursday, after facing steep opposition from fellow Republicans.

Nov 21, 2024 11:45 AM CST

Can Trump constitutionally install his nominees with recess appointments? Would Scalia be ‘aghast’?

Updated: Can President-elect Donald Trump use recess appointments to install his Cabinet nominees?

Nov 18, 2024 11:58 AM CST

House speaker moves to block Senate Judiciary Committee from seeing Gaetz ethics report

Speaker Mike Johnson said Friday that he will urge the House Ethics Committee to suppress its report into attorney general nominee Matt Gaetz and block the Senate Judiciary Committee from viewing the investigation, an unusual intervention that could shape a divisive nomination fight.

Nov 15, 2024 2:15 PM CST

Gaetz’s AG nomination could face ‘steep’ climb, senators warn

Republican senators signaled Thursday that they plan to closely scrutinize allegations of wrongdoing dogging Trump’s pick to lead the Justice Department, former congressman Matt Gaetz, setting up a potential showdown between the president-elect and the GOP-controlled Senate.

Nov 14, 2024 4:21 PM CST

Gaetz resigned days before ethics investigation report expected

The House Ethics Committee was set to vote this week on releasing a report about Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), who resigned from Congress on Wednesday after being picked as President-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general.

Nov 14, 2024 8:18 AM CST

Mississippi Senate paid Black lawyer ‘significantly less’ than white colleagues, DOJ suit alleges

A U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit has accused the Mississippi Senate of paying a Black staff lawyer about half the salary of her white colleagues.

Nov 11, 2024 1:57 PM CST

Trump wants to expand death penalty to include these crimes

President-elect Donald Trump said during his campaign he would like to expand the death penalty to include child rapists, immigrants who kill U.S. citizens and police officers, human traffickers and drug dealers.

Nov 11, 2024 9:44 AM CST

Federal judge suspends deadlines in Trump criminal case

The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s election-interference case in D.C. federal court suspended all remaining deadlines Friday—the latest sign that the federal prosecutions of the president-elect are winding down.

Nov 8, 2024 1:00 PM CST

Trump says he’d fire special counsel Jack Smith in ‘two seconds’ if elected again

Former President Donald Trump said Thursday that he would “fire” special counsel Jack Smith on his first day back in the White House if he is elected again, making clear that he would push to drop a pair of federal cases against him.

Oct 24, 2024 1:07 PM CDT

DOJ announces $3B in fines for landmark money-laundering case

TD Bank pleaded guilty to federal money laundering charges Thursday, agreeing to pay more than $3 billion in fines for enabling drug traffickers and other criminals to open accounts and transfer money through the bank. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the agreement and said the bank is the first in American history to plead guilty to conspiring to laundering money.

Oct 11, 2024 9:56 AM CDT

8th Circuit decision is setback for ‘constitutional sheriffs’ movement, says gun-safety group

A federal appeals court has ruled for the U.S. Department of Justice in a challenge to a Missouri law that banned state and local officials from helping enforce some federal gun regulations.

Aug 27, 2024 10:17 AM CDT

Supreme Court says prosecutors improperly charged hundreds of Jan. 6 rioters

Federal prosecutors improperly charged hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants with obstruction, the Supreme Court ruled on Friday, upending many cases against rioters who disrupted the certification of the 2020 presidential election.

Jun 28, 2024 10:44 AM CDT

Judge hears challenge to appointment, funding of special counsel in Trump documents case

A federal judge overseeing the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump heard arguments Friday on whether U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland had constitutional authority to appoint special counsel Jack Smith.

Jun 24, 2024 3:19 PM CDT

Justice Department rejects contempt case against attorney general

Justice Department officials said Friday that the agency will not pursue contempt of Congress charges against Attorney General Merrick Garland that the Republican-run House had voted for this week.

Jun 14, 2024 3:30 PM CDT

GOP-run House votes to hold AG Merrick Garland in contempt

The Republican-controlled House voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress. The vote, which passed with an initial tally of 216-207, marks the third time in a dozen years that a sitting attorney general was found in contempt by a majority of House members.

Jun 12, 2024 4:14 PM CDT