June 28, 2025

In another era of American history, President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice would have been the subject of a major ongoing scandal. It’s almost too easy to evoke John Mitchell, the former Attorney General whose loyalty to President Richard Nixon and role in Watergate landed him 17 months in prison. 

You may also recall the firing of seven U.S. attorneys, several of whom declined to prosecute false claims of voter fraud, during the George W. Bush administration, which led to the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. 

Today that would be just another headline — one that could get lost among all of the headlines that sound similar. As Democracy Docket reported this week, Trump’s Department of Justice is working across the country to disenfranchise voters, suing district court judges who rule against them, and, according to a whistleblower, saying “f**k you” to court orders. 

Under Attorney General Pam Bondi’s leadership, the DOJ has turned into nothing more than a political weapon for Trump. As he lays the groundwork for the midterms, Trump knows that his best bet at victory is unfree and unfair elections.

As Trump’s DOJ ramps up its efforts to suppress the vote and undermine democracy, Democracy Docket is tracking its every move to keep you informed. Upgrade now for $120/year to get exclusive analysis like this sent straight to your inbox.

Trump’s Department of Justice is working with North Carolina’s GOP-controlled elections board to force voters to take difficult and unnecessary steps to verify their identity — or risk disenfranchisement. In Orange County, Calif., the department is suing for sensitive voter information in a desperate effort to find evidence of noncitizen voting. In just a few months, DOJ’s voting section has been shifted from a unit that works to protect voting rights to one that works to undermine them.

But the GOP Congress is unbothered — if not happy to follow along with dear leader. And much of the legacy media isn’t too interested either — if not openly willing to capitulate with Trump’s demands. 

It almost makes you yearn for the era of Watergate, when Attorney General Elliot Richardson and his deputy, William Ruckelshaus, resigned rather than fire the special prosecutor Archibald Cox. Almost. 

We can’t allow ourselves to become desensitized to the Trump administration’s authoritarianism. We can’t allow ourselves to simply watch in shock as our democracy is torn down brick by brick. 

It’s up to us to fight. It’s up to us to challenge this unconstitutional power grab. At Democracy Docket, I will continue to sound the alarm bell — and you should, too.  

YOUR READING LIST

• New Filing Details NC Election Board and Trump DOJ Co-Ordinating on Plan That Could Disenfranchise Voters
  
  
• DOJ Sues Every Federal District Judge in Maryland, Challenging Due Process Rights
  
  
• DOJ Cuts Off Negotiations, Sues Orange County, CA Over Voter Records
  
  
• Senior DOJ Official Suggested Department Tell Courts ‘F*** You’ And Ignore Orders, Whistleblower Says