July 03, 2025
Bonnie Cash/Sipa USA
New Jersey Democratic leaders say acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba, Donald Trump's former personal attorney, has politicized the office and weaponized it against the president's opponents. She has been nominated to become the permanent leader of the office.
Several of New Jersey's Democratic leaders are blasting President Donald Trump's nomination of Alina Habba as U.S. Attorney of New Jersey as a partisan power grab aimed at reshaping the state to serve his political agenda.
Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee who previously worked in the U.S. Attorney's Office, said Habba is unqualified for the job. Habba, 41, had no prosecutorial experience when Trump appointed her in an interim capacity in March; she has represented the president as his attorney in multiple legal cases.
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"Habba has explicitly stated her goal to politicize the office where I served as a prosecutor, and as acting U.S. Attorney, she has already weaponized it against her perceived political opponents," Sherrill said in a statement Wednesday.
The White House announced Tuesday that Trump nominated Habba to a full four-year term. When he previously named her as the interim attorney, Trump said Habba would "fight tirelessly to secure a legal system that is both fair and just for the wonderful people of New Jersey."
Within days of assuming her role, Habba said she would investigate Gov. Phil Murphy and state Attorney General Matt Platkin over the state's immigration directive limiting law enforcement's cooperation in civil immigration investigations. She also said on a conservative podcast that she hopes to "turn New Jersey red."
In less than four months as acting U.S. Attorney, Habba has drawn ire from judges for ignoring the historically nonpartisan stance of the office.
She's targeted Democratic officials who have opposed Trump's mass detention and deportation plans, including Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, who was arrested May 9 outside an immigrant detention facility in the city. Habba later charged Rep. LaMonica McIver, a Democrat, with assault in connection with a scuffle that broke out when Baraka was detained. McIver pleaded not guilty to the charges and faces a trial in November.
When Baraka's charges were dropped 10 days after his arrest, a judge scolded prosecutors from Habba's office, warning them that it should not be used to "satisfy public clamor, nor to advance political agendas."
Baraka sued Habba over his arrest, claiming he was maliciously prosecuted out of political retribution. Habba responded by saying the mayor should join her in "prioritizing violent crime and public safety."
In a joint statement Wednesday, Sens. Andy Kim and Cory Booker, both Democrats, also accused Habba of degrading her office.
"The people of New Jersey deserve a U.S. Attorney that has deep experience with law enforcement, a reputation and an approach that puts partisanship to the side and who will work to keep our communities safe and impartially pursue justice," they said. "In her short tenure as an interim U.S. Attorney, she has degraded the office and pursued frivolous and politically motivated prosecutions."
Habba hasn't responded to the criticism but did repost a defense on social media Wednesday by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who called her "a fearless, fair, and effective public servant."
Habba must be confirmed by the Senate by the end of July, but a confirmation hearing has not yet been scheduled. Her 120-day interim appointment expires in three weeks, but judges in New Jersey's U.S. District Court could allow her to stay pending confirmation.
New Jersey Monitor is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. New Jersey Monitor maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Terrence T. McDonald for questions: info@newjerseymonitor.com.
