The Dictatorship
DOJ again swiftly fires a U.S. attorney chosen to replace Trump loyalist
Almost immediately after federal judges in the Eastern District of Virginia on Friday appointed a veteran litigator as interim U.S. attorney, a position previously held by Lindsey HalliganDeputy Attorney General Todd Blanche shut it down.
James Hundley, a defense attorney with more than 35 years of experience, was unanimously appointed to serve as the top federal prosecutor in the Eastern District of Virginia on Friday afternoon.
But shortly after Hundley’s appointment, Blanche sounded off on social media.
“Here we go again. EDVA judges do not pick our US Attorney. POTUS does,” Blanche wrote in a post on X.“James Hundley, you’re fired!”
The top prosecutor position in the powerful Virginia office has been vacant since Halligan — an insurance lawyer personally chosen by President Donald Trump to pursue criminal charges against his perceived political rivals in the role — stepped down last month, after she was chewed out by two federal judges over her unlawful appointment.
Federal judges can appoint a U.S. attorney if a nominee has not been confirmed within 120 days. Justice Department officials have maintained, however, that it should be up to Trump to make those appointments.
Hundley is not the first casualty of the administration’s assertion of authority over the appointment of interim federal prosecutors. Last week, the White House fired Donald Kinsella hours after he was sworn in as U.S. attorney in the Northern District of New York.
“Judges don’t pick U.S. Attorneys, @POTUS does. See Article II of our Constitution. You are fired, Donald Kinsella,” Blanche wrote on X at the time.
In July, Attorney General Pam Bondi fired Desiree Leigh Grace as U.S. attorney for New Jersey the same day she was appointed by federal judges. Grace was tapped to replace Alina Habba, who, like Halligan, is a personal ally of Trump.
Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.
The Dictatorship
The Latest: US hits pro-government demonstration in Iran as war threatens global economy
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The suspect in an attack at a synagogue near Detroit lost several family members in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon this month, according to the Islamic Institute of America in Dearborn and community leaders.
Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a 41-year-old U.S. citizen originally from Lebanon, lost his two brothers and a niece and nephew in the strike on their home, according to those sources. Whether that played a role in the motive for the attack remains unclear, and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer deferred a question about it to the FBI on Friday, citing an ongoing investigation.
Authorities are looking at the possibility Ghazali may have had familial ties to Hezbollah in Lebanon, two law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation told MS NOW.
Ghazali died in the Thursday attack, in which authorities say he drove a car into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Michigan, injuring a security officer. Ghazali was a resident of Dearborn Heights, Mayor Mo Baydoun said in a Facebook post. Baydoun also said in that post that Ghazali “lost several members of his own family, including his niece and nephew, in an Israeli attack on their home in Lebanon” this month.
The Thursday attack in Michigan came as the U.S. and Israel wage a war with Iranwhich they launched on Feb. 28. Security around Jewish communities in places such as New York has been heightened since the conflict began.
Ghazali first came to the U.S. in 2011 on a spousal visa before being granted citizenship in 2016, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said.
In a phone interview with Fox host Brian Kilmeade, President Donald Trump appeared to blame former President Joe Biden for Ghazali’s entry into the country when asked about the Michigan attack and the deadly shooting at Old Dominion University in Michigan.
“They came in a lot through Biden, and they came in through other presidents, frankly, and it’s a disgrace,” Trump said.
Temple Israel describes itself as the country’s largest Jewish Reform congregation, and it also has an early childhood education center on site that more than 100 kids attend, Whitmer said. All children were safely evacuated following the attack, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said.
“This is targeting babies who are Jewish,” Whitmer said. “That’s antisemitism at its absolute worst.”
The security guard who was injured was hospitalized but is expected to recover.
Whitmer on Friday thanked the synagogue’s security personnel, who she said “were selfless in their courage and they saved lives.”
Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., added that if the synagogue’s private security, local law enforcement and first responders “had not all done their jobs almost perfectly, we would be talking about an immense tragedy here today with children gone.”
Andrew Bossone and Chris O’Leary contributed to this report.
Julianne McShane is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW who also covers the politics of abortion and reproductive rights. You can send her tips from a non-work device on Signal at jmcshane.19 or follow her on X or Bluesky.
Marc Santia is an investigative correspondent for MS NOW.
The Dictatorship
Missile strikes a helipad inside the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad, Iraqi security officials say
BAGHDAD (AP) — A missile struck a helipad inside the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad, two Iraqi security officials said.
Associated Press footage showed a column of smoke rising Saturday morning over the embassy compound.
The sprawling embassy complex, one of the largest U.S. diplomatic facilities in the world, has been repeatedly targeted by rockets and drones fired by Iran-aligned militias.
There was no immediate comment from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. On Friday, the embassy renewed its Level 4 security alert for Iraq, warning that Iran and Iran-aligned militia groups have previously carried out attacks against U.S. citizens, interests and infrastructure, and “may continue to target them.”
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