Resources for upholding the rule of law at one of the most powerful agencies in the executive branch

Independent law enforcement is essential to a democracy rooted in the rule of law. This principle recognizes that the government’s law enforcement powers can be a grave threat to democracy if they are abused by authoritarian-minded leaders to punish enemies, shield themselves from accountability for wrongdoing, or interfere in the conduct of free and fair elections. Throughout this nation’s history, federal criminal law enforcement power has largely been administered independent of the White House, Congress, and other political influence. 

Following the Nixon administration’s abuses of the Department of Justice during the Watergate era, Department leaders established formal policies aimed at reinforcing the historical norm of non-interference by the White House in specific law enforcement matters – policies that have been embraced by leaders of both political parties throughout the decades since. But leading into his second term, President-Elect Trump has promised an agenda of retribution centered on the Department of Justice. On the campaign trail, he repeatedly threatened criminal investigations and prosecutions of his perceived political enemies, media companies, civil society, and dissenting citizens. His nomination of loyalists to key positions in the Department confirms that he intends to make good on his promise to wield federal law enforcement as a tool of personal and political retribution. 

Politicized law enforcement not only runs counter to longstanding norms, it violates core provisions of the Constitution, including due process and equal protection, as well as other federal laws, regulations, and rules of professional conduct. The harm it would inflict on the people targeted and our democracy more broadly may be substantial. And those who facilitate politicized law enforcement risk violating their own ethical and legal obligations, at considerable personal and professional cost. 

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