Former Trump lawyer accuses federal judge of making 'baseless accusations of lying' after departure

The interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia left her post after completing a 120-day appointment amid a legal standoff in which a federal judge questioned her authority, declined to appoint a successor and triggered an appeal over separation of powers.

Former Trump lawyer Lindsey Halligan announced her departure Tuesday, saying a federal judge ruled in November that her appointment was invalid and that only the district court had the authority to name an interim successor following Erik Siebert’s exit.

She said the ruling led the court to treat her appointment as disqualifying, including striking her name from court filings.

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"I was subjected to baseless accusations of lying to a tribunal and making false or misleading statements," Halligan wrote. "I was ordered to respond to sua sponte orders and to personally sign filings explaining why my name appeared on pleadings, diverting time and resources from public safety responsibilities. Assistant U.S. Attorneys were told in open court that I should resign."

She said that even after declaring her appointment invalid, the district court did not take the step its own reading of the law required by appointing a new U.S. attorney to fill the role.

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Instead, she said the court treated her as though she had been removed by striking her name from filings and declaring her appointment unlawful, while taking no action to fill what it said was an existing vacancy.

"In short, the court took no action to fill the vacancy it said already existed," Halligan wrote. "The result was a vacuum: the Executive Branch was told it lacked appointment authority, and the Judiciary declined to exercise the authority it claimed was exclusively its own. That contradiction is now on appeal."

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Attorney General Pam Bondi praised Halligan’s tenure as interim U.S. attorney, saying she served with distinction and focused on prosecuting violent offenders to protect Eastern Virginia’s more than six million residents.

"Democratic Senators weaponized the blue slip process, making it impossible for Lindsey’s term as United States Attorney to continue following the expiration of her 120-day appointment," Bondi wrote on X. "Despite multiple, unnecessary legal obstacles placed in her path, Lindsey stepped forward at a critical juncture for our Nation and fulfilled her responsibilities with courage and resolve."

"Her departure is a significant loss for the Department of Justice and the communities she served," Bondi continued. "While we will feel her absence keenly, we are confident that she will continue to serve her country in other ways."

Bondi said the circumstances surrounding Halligan’s departure were "deeply misguided," adding that the Justice Department would continue seeking review of decisions she said, "hinder our ability to keep the American people safe."

Ilhan Omar vows 'not to give ICE a single cent' in heated congressional funding fight

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., said she will oppose funding ahead of a House vote to fund the government before the Jan. 30 deadline, saying she will not approve of giving more money for the Department of Homeland Security. 

Omar voiced her opposition on X, saying she would not vote to financially support federal immigration agencies amid the ongoing enforcement operations in her state.

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"I will not vote to give ICE a single cent," she wrote. "No more blank checks for a rogue agency that operates above the law, escalates violence, and erodes our most basic freedoms."

Omar, as well as many Democratic officials, has repeatedly voiced anger at the Trump administration and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) because of their crackdown on illegal immigrant criminals and the shooting of Renee Good, who federal authorities said was trying to ram into an ICE officer with her vehicle. 

ICE has targeted illegal immigrants with criminal records but has been met with opposition from local officials and anti-ICE agitators who have confronted officers, sometimes violently. 

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Many Democrats have framed the operations as unlawful attacks on immigrants. However, the Trump administration has released the names and criminal offenses, including violent and child sex abuse convictions, of some of those arrested. 

On Tuesday, Congress unveiled a $1.2 trillion spending package that includes funding for multiple aspects of the federal government, but a partisan divide remains over funds for ICE. 

But progressives have threatened a rebellion over funding for ICE, which is included in the DHS portion of the bill.

If passed by the House and Senate, the legislation — which combines four separate spending bills into a package called a "minibus" — would be the final way for Congress to avert another government shutdown.

Fox News Digital's Alex Miller, Elizabeth Elkind and Leo Briceno contributed to this report. 

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