Power Grab/Fire anyone who can stop him
The Justice Department demands a list of the thousands of FBI employees who worked January 6 cases
Eleven days into the term, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove’s office asked the FBI to name every employee on the January 6 investigations so it could decide whether “personnel actions” were warranted.
What happened
On January 31, 2025, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove’s office asked the FBI to identify every employee who had worked on January 6 investigations, with the list due the following Tuesday. The request also covered a Hamas-related case in New York. Bove wanted the information so his office could decide whether “personnel actions” were warranted.
Acting FBI Director Brian Driscoll told the workforce the request covered thousands of employees, himself included. Bove also ordered eight senior FBI executives terminated. The same day, roughly 40 probationary prosecutors in the D.C. U.S. Attorney’s Office who had handled January 6 cases were dismissed.
Bove later accused Driscoll and his deputy of insubordination for resisting the request. The day before the request, Kash Patel, then awaiting confirmation as FBI director, had told the Senate that no one would be fired over the cases they worked.
Who benefited
Bove gained direct leverage over FBI leadership, and the apparatus that investigated January 6 was placed under review. Trump had pardoned or commuted the sentences of the January 6 defendants on his first day. Bove, his former defense lawyer, was later confirmed to a federal appeals court seat.
Who wanted something
Bove wanted the names of the people who had worked the cases, and the power to act on them. He drove the request from the Deputy Attorney General’s office and ordered the executive firings. Trump welcomed dismissals of people he said had “weaponized” the department, and denied he had requested any action.
Who lost out
FBI agents and analysts faced possible dismissal for having worked cases they were assigned. They had been placed on the largest investigation in bureau history, not chosen it. The FBI Agents Association said the move contradicted Patel’s commitments and would weaken the bureau’s ability to address national security threats.
Why it matters
Thousands of career employees were singled out for review by the cases they were assigned. Within days, eight executives and about 40 prosecutors were gone. Agents weighing future cases that involve the president or his allies now know that the work can carry a career cost.