WASHINGTON (CN) – During the 2024 election, then-candidate Donald Trump campaigned on a radical overhaul of the federal government, changes he has already initiated with his unconventional nominees to lead agencies such as the Justice Department and the FBI.
Legal experts at the McDermott Will law firm outlined a series of likely changes and priority shifts from President Joe Biden's administration in a news conference Thursday.
The lawyers added that while Trump has distanced himself from the Heritage Foundation's infamous “Project 2025,” many of the proposals in the 922-page plan are likely to be implemented across the federal government.
The Justice Department, which Trump has railed against following a criminal investigation and indictment by special counsel Jack Smith, is facing the most dramatic changes.
Trump has tapped a number of loyalists to lead the nation's top law enforcement agency. Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is poised to replace Merrick Garland as attorney general. The Judiciary Committee announced Wednesday that Bondi's first confirmation interview would begin Jan. 15.
Sagar Ravi, a McDermott partner and former Justice Department prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, said Thursday that the department's priorities under Bondi will be: immigration enforcement, violent and transitional crime, the opioid crisis, national security and export controls, enforcement of the Antitrust and Justice Department reforms.
Ravi added that, unlike Trump's first nominee Matt Gaetz, Bondi has extensive law enforcement experience but has never held a position in the Justice Department and could aim to “shake things up” when she arrives.
Ravi explained that Trump's promises of mass deportations would be handled primarily by U.S. attorneys' offices in states, while the Justice Department would take action, such as targeting large companies that hire undocumented immigrants.
He emphasized that Trump's proposed tariffs against countries such as China, Mexico and Canada represent a significant change from the Biden administration's sanctions against Russia and its trading partners.
“I expect that any attempts to circumvent these tariffs, whether through misclassification or smuggling of goods or failure to pay required fees, will also likely be a priority for prosecution,” Ravi said.
Another big change would come to the Justice Department's white-collar crime divisions, particularly in enforcing measures against cryptocurrency, artificial intelligence and public corruption.
While the Biden administration has heavily targeted cryptocurrencies and AI, Trump's decision to appoint David Sacks as his new “AI and crypto czar” demonstrated his aim to loosen up on crypto and change the government's view of AI, to focus on “consumers and free expression violations.”
Trump's public corruption crackdown, Ravi said, would likely target what Trump has called the Justice Department's “weapon” — particularly its two federal criminal cases for subversion of the 2020 election and misuse of classified documents — as well as alleged “voter fraud.”
Jon Dubrow, head of McDermott's antitrust group, said Thursday that one issue Trump would likely keep in line with Biden is tightening scrutiny of Big Tech companies and health care groups, issues that have bipartisan and broad popular support find.
Dubrow didn't address specific cases like the ongoing antitrust cases against Google, but suggested that Gail Slater, Trump's nominee to lead the Justice Department's antitrust division, might be more inclined to pursue divestiture agreements than current antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter.
Trump also named Todd Blanche, Emil Bove, John Sauer and Harmeet Dhillon to serve as deputy attorney general, deputy attorney general and attorney general and lead the Civil Rights Division. Blanche, Bove and Sauer helped represent Trump in his criminal cases.
Ravi noted that he worked with Blanche and Bove during his time in New York, describing them as “institutionalists.” Kash Patel, Trump's choice for FBI director, is the exact opposite in this regard, Ravi said.
Alex Southwell, McDermott partner and regulatory enforcement defense attorney, said he expects Patel to implement many Project 2025 proposals and will seek to respond immediately to proposals such as closing the FBI headquarters in Washington to create a “Museum of the Deep State” and streamline its non-law enforcement personnel, change the ten-year term of the director, and realign FBI reporting within the Justice Department.
Southwell added that Patel will likely review and eliminate what he sees as “lawless policies, investigations and cases” while changing the jurisdiction and focus of the Civil Rights Division, overhauling the process for applying for Justice Department grants and, more importantly will ensure the appointment of political appointees throughout the Ministry of Justice.
Patel's nomination made clear that Trump intends to undo extensive criminal investigations into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, which Patel and other Trump loyalists have described as part of the Justice Department and FBI's “weaponization.”
Panelists noted that of all Trump nominees, Patel could face the most opposition from the Senate in his confirmation hearings, but did not expect him to meet the same fate as Gaetz.
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