The White House is expected to implement leadership changes at the Justice Department, with possible promotions and demotions involving two senior officials, sources told CBS News.
Discussions focus on promoting Harmeet Dhillon, the current Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, to a higher position within the department. Meanwhile, Stanley Woodward, the Associate Attorney General and the department’s third-ranking official, is likely to face demotion. No final decisions have been confirmed.
The potential shakeup follows the recent removal of former Attorney General Pam Bondi earlier this week amid grievances over her handling of investigations into former President Trump’s political opponents. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche was appointed acting attorney general, with other possible permanent replacements including Lee Zeldin, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator and former congressman.
Stanley Woodward’s role as Associate Attorney General currently includes oversight of divisions such as Civil Rights, Antitrust, Civil, and Environment and Natural Resources, as well as various grant-making and trustee programs. Woodward has previously represented several Trump allies in prominent cases, including White House adviser Peter Navarro and FBI Director Kash Patel.
Harmeet Dhillon has led the Civil Rights Division through significant changes, including a departure of over 75% of its attorneys in the past year. Many left due to concerns related to new mission statements and shifts in the office’s focus. Dhillon’s tenure has seen the division investigate university diversity policies, challenge transgender athletes’ participation in women’s sports, and initiate litigation to obtain unredacted voter registration lists from numerous states. She has also established a gun rights section within the division and halted Biden-era consent decree negotiations with police departments in Minneapolis and Louisville.
The Civil Rights Division was originally created by the 1957 Civil Rights Act to address racial discrimination and protect voting rights. More than 200 former attorneys from the division have publicly criticized Dhillon’s leadership, claiming it is undermining the office’s mission.
A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment on the personnel matters.
Why it matters
Leadership changes at the Justice Department’s upper ranks could influence enforcement priorities and approaches to civil rights, voting rights, and law enforcement oversight. Dhillon’s potential promotion signals a continuation of the department’s recent realignment under Trump-aligned leadership, affecting litigation strategies and internal division dynamics during a period of significant staff turnover and public scrutiny.
Background
The Justice Department has undergone recent turmoil following former Attorney General Bondi’s departure and amid ongoing political pressures related to investigations involving Trump and his associates. Woodward’s previous role as associate attorney general puts him at the center of these developments, given his legal work for Trump allies. Meanwhile, Dhillon’s directional shifts in the Civil Rights Division mark a distinct policy change from the previous administration’s priorities.
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