Bondi Suspends Attorney Who Threw the Trump Administration Under the Bus at Deportation Hearing

AP Photo/Ben Curtis

Attorney General Pam Bondi has suspended the senior Department of Justice attorney representing the administration in a high-visibility deportation case. Enez Reuveni, the acting deputy director of Justice’s immigration litigation division, was suspended from duty and had his email terminated in a letter from Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche accusing him of failing to “follow a directive from your superiors.” Reuveni is a 15-year veteran of the Department of Justice and was only promoted to acting deputy director of the immigration litigation division two weeks ago.

Advertisement

Accompanying Reuveni on vacation will be his boss, August Flentje, the acting director of the immigration litigation division, who was suspended Saturday for "failure to supervise a subordinate." 

This all flows from the case of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, an illegal from El Salvador who entered the US in 2011. He had alleged ties to the Salvadoran MS-13 gang and was ordered deported in 2019. A judge put his deportation on hold because he may have been in danger from a rival gang in El Salvador. Be that as it may, Abrego Garcia was scooped up by ICE in early March and deported to an anti-terrorist prison in El Salvador. His attorneys sued, and on Friday, the judge, an Obama appointee, ordered the government to find and return Abrego Garcia to the US; see Judge Orders Trump to Return Deported Man Sent to El Salvadoran Prison, Sets Up a Massive Showdown – RedState. That set up a Constitutional showdown; see Trump Administration Sends Brutally Honest Response Saying Judge Can't Undo a Perfectly Good Deportation – RedState.

Reuveni's demise was probably brought on by his court performance Friday which showed he disagreed with the Trump administration's position and seemed to be more interested in sucking up to the judge by throwing his client under the bus than in doing his job. These are some of the exchanges.

Advertisement

When Pam Bondi was sworn in, one of the first things she did was to address the practice of DOJ lawyers during Trump 1.0 of refusing to participate in cases, sign briefs, and even throw cases they disagreed with. "It is the job of an attorney privileged to serve in the Department of Justice to zealously defend the interests of the United States," she wrote, "Those interests, and the overall policy of the United States, are set by the Nation's Chief Executive, who is vested by the Constitution with all '[E]xecutive Power.' More broadly, attorneys are expected to zealously advance, protect, and defend their client's interests. Department of Justice attorneys have signed up for a job that requires zealously advocating for the United States."

This isn't hard. Working for DOJ shouldn't be like playing AYSO soccer. There shouldn't be participation trophies, and not every game ends with free snacks. It seems like the bad old ways in the DOJ went underground for a while but are now reemerging, and Reuveni was in the wrong place at the wrong time, saying the wrong thing. The seriousness of the affair is underscored by Reuveni's supervisor getting hammered even though he signed the combative brief opposing the judge's "bring him back" order on Saturday. This seems calculated to send a message that it isn't enough that you personally are getting with the new program; you are responsible for bringing your attorneys along with you.

Advertisement

We are in a death struggle with the forces of progressivism and the Deep State that acts as its guardian. As the Trump administration struggles to uproot the people and policies that have put our liberty and nation at risk, it is resisted at every turn. You can do your part by staying informed of the issues. Join RedState VIP and help continue our coverage to keep you abreast of the fight. Use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.

Recommended

Join the conversation as a VIP Member

Trending on RedState Videos