Bondi announces Alina Habba replacement in NJ has been 'removed' from post

Attorney General Pam Bondi on Tuesday night announced that the court-selected interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey has been removed, indicating she was prepared to fight for former interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba to keep her role.

The move comes after New Jersey's 17 U.S. District Court judges chose to replace Habba earlier Tuesday with her First Assistant U.S. Attorney, Desiree Leigh Grace. The vote to replace Habba instead of extending her role occurred as her 120-day term winds down.

The Justice Department, led by Bondi, has blasted the move as a partisan attack on Habba, who is an ally of President Donald Trump. The attorney general indicated Habba deserves to keep the role while she awaits Senate confirmation. 

"[Habba] has been doing a great job in making NJ safe again. Nonetheless, politically minded judges refused to allow her to continue in her position, replacing Alina with the First Assistant," Bondi said in a post on X. "Accordingly, the First Assistant United States Attorney in New Jersey has just been removed. This Department of Justice does not tolerate rogue judges — especially when they threaten the President’s core Article II powers."

It was not immediately clear what the removal means, but a source told the New York Times that Grace has been fired.

The two Democratic New Jersey senators, Cory Booker and Andy Kim, slammed the Justice Department for intervening in the court decision, claiming it was another example of the Trump administration not respecting the separation of powers.

“This administration may not like the law, but they are not above it,” the lawmakers said in a joint statement. “The people of New Jersey deserve a U.S. attorney who will enforce the law and pursue justice for the people of our state without partisanship or politics.”

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.