President Donald Trump used an appointment maneuver to keep acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba in her post after federal judges in the state, most of whom were appointed by Democratic presidents, named someone else to replace her.
Habba’s 120-day temporary appointment was set to expire at midnight Friday evening, meaning she would have had to step down after the judges instead chose one of her assistants, Desiree Grace, to succeed her earlier this week. The Senate had yet to take up her nomination.
But on Thursday, Trump withdrew her nomination to become the permanent U.S. attorney, according to a Justice Dept. official, and instead appointed her first assistant U.S. attorney, making her acting U.S. attorney again for the time being since that post is vacant, The Hill reported.
“Donald J. Trump is the 47th President. Pam Bondi is the Attorney General. And I am now the Acting United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey,” Habba said in a statement posted to the social platform X. “I don’t cower to pressure. I don’t answer to politics. This is a fight for justice. And I’m all in.”
Grace had previously declared she was ready to step into the role, escalating the standoff to a new level after Bondi fired her following the judges’ decision to appoint her over Habba.
Grace wrote on LinkedIn earlier Thursday that she’s honored by her appointment “on merit” and is ready to take on the role “in accordance with the law.”
“I’ve served under both Republican and Democratic administrations,” Grace wrote. “I’ve been promoted four times in the last five years by both — including four months ago by this administration. Politics never impacted my work at the Department. Priorities change, of course, and resources are shifted, but the work and the mission were steady.”
Last week, the Trump administration similarly bypassed a court ruling that blocked the retention of another presidential appointee. Judges on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York declined to extend the interim term of John Sarcone III, Trump’s nominee for the district’s chief federal prosecutor, The Hill noted.
To circumvent the decision, Sarcone was designated a “special attorney” to Bondi, granting him the authority of a U.S. attorney indefinitely.
Fox News added that Habba resigned her post on Thursday, giving Trump an opening to re-appoint her to her current post, which has a 210-day limit.
“Trump has also nominated Habba to serve the full, four-year role as the permanent U.S. attorney, but that position requires Senate approval and Habba has no clear path to confirmation,” Fox reported.
That’s because New Jersey’s two Democratic senators, Cory Booker and Andy Kim, are currently blocking her nomination using the Senate’s “blue slip” tradition. Meanwhile, a source familiar with the situation said the Trump administration has yet to submit any materials for the Senate to formally review Habba’s nomination.
In a statement, Booker claimed that the Trump administration had violated the law by dismissing Grace.
“The firing of a career public servant, lawfully appointed by the court, is another blatant attempt to intimidate anyone that doesn’t agree with them and undermine judicial independence,” Booker wrote on social media, according to Fox News. “This Administration may not like the law, but they are not above it.”
In May, Habba brought federal charges against Rep. Lamonica McIver (D-N.J.) for allegedly assaulting an ICE agent at a detention facility in New Jersey.
If convicted, McIver could face several years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Fox News reported that the New Jersey Democrat is now fundraising off her indictment to “fight back” against what she claimed are charges motivated by racism.