Acting Director Brian Driscoll, the leaders of the FBI’s field offices in New York and Los Angeles, and an agents group comforted staffers and resisted attempts by the Trump administration to fire FBI officials amid widespread fears of mass firings.
Following his pardon of almost all of the Jan. 6 rioters just hours after taking office for a second term, President Donald Trump publicly praised the firings of eight senior FBI career executives on Friday, which sparked the uneasiness.
The acting director, Driscoll, reiterated Saturday night in a memo to FBI employees that the Trump administration is requesting the names of all FBI agents involved in the Jan. 6 investigations, a figure he has stated is in the thousands.
We are still working with the Department of Justice to further understand why the lists I said yesterday are being sought, I want to reassure you. Driscoll penned.
According to two individuals who received it, the FBI Agents Association notified staff members on Sunday afternoon that some agents had received an email from higher-ups requesting that they answer a 12-question survey regarding their involvement in cases from January 6.
The group, which represents agents but is not a union, added, “We have verified that this is true and we expect a significant majority of our members to receive this.” We advise you to leave the handling of these surveys to your division leadership at this time.
“I have been told I am obligated to respond to this survey, without being afforded appropriate time to research my answers, speak with others, speak with counsel or other representation,” that is how the association advised agents to answer one of the questions.
“To the best of my ability and belief, I have performed my duties in accordance with… federal statutes and the Constitution of the United States,” the organization suggested they write as well.
The Trump administration seems to be launching an unprecedented campaign of retaliation against prosecutors and law enforcement officials who worked on the criminal investigations of Trump and his supporters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, according to legal experts and current and former FBI officials.
According to Douglas Charles, a professor at Pennsylvania State University who specializes in the history of the FBI, this is entirely new territory. The FBI has undergone reorganizations at various points in time. That’s not what this is. It appears to be a complete breakdown of the FBI’s autonomous culture.
During his Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday, Kash Patel, Trump’s choice to lead the FBI, pledged to shield all FBI personnel from political reprisals.
However, just over 24 hours later, Driscoll was told to remove the eight top FBI career executives by Emil Bove, the acting deputy attorney general and Trump’s former defense attorney. Bove also asked for the names of all agents who worked on cases on January 6.
Patel may remove Driscoll right away and gather the identities of the agents who worked on the Jan. 6 cases if the Senate confirms him. Patel may try to terminate those agents, move them to different roles, or put them on administrative leave. It is unknown to the public when Patel will be confirmed by the Senate.
Agents association issues advice
In a statement released on Saturday, the FBI officers Association expressed worry over what it described as additional attempts to pressure FBI officers into resigning.
According to a newsletter sent to members, some of our ranks are quite afraid of being kicked out, and some of them have begun packing up their desks.
The message advised agents on what to do in the event that they feel they could lose their jobs.
The instruction stated that you should not offer to resign or actually do so. You must understand that your removal is not voluntary, even though we would never support physical non-compliance.
“Remain composed and avoid saying anything that might be interpreted as breaking the Hatch Act,” it continued, alluding to the legislation that forbids federal public officials from participating in political activities. “If you are informed that you will be fired, make sure you receive a written notice of termination and send it to us right away.
Driscoll noted in his message on Saturday that agents do not choose which cases they are given to work on, and that just working on a contentious issue is not a proof of wrongdoing.
As fellow FBI employees and career special agents, we can attest to the fact that none of us are given cases based on anything other than the duties of the positions we have, he wrote. Please be clear that we do not consider anyone’s inclusion on one of these lists to be a sign of wrongdoing.
He continued by saying that if an FBI agent is recommended for disciplinary action, they are granted civil service protections. Part of the purpose of the regulations is to keep elected politicians from interfering with the bureau’s criminal investigations.
He continued by saying that this well-established procedure guarantees accountability and provides workers with the proper due process and evaluation in compliance with current law and policy. We are still committed to following that process.
The apparent attempts to eject authorities were also denounced by the Society of Former FBI Agents on Friday.
We are deeply troubled to discover that FBI personnel are being asked to retire or quit, or risk being summarily fired right away,” the statement read. “These workers are not receiving the necessary due process or an explanation for such personnel actions.
Driscoll vehemently objected to a plan on Friday to fire more agents connected to the Jan. 6 cases, raising concerns among some that himself would be let out. FBI officials, both past and present, told NBC News.
An FBI agent summed up what transpired in a message that went viral among FBI staff members as follows: In the end, DOJ arrived and sought to terminate several J6 agents. Driscoll is a total hottie. He refused to back down and told DOJ, the WH surrogate, to F— Off.
He pushed back aggressively, according to a former FBI official who knows Driscoll well.
“It’s not true,” a senior FBI official said, disputing the statements made by the current and former officials.
According to several people acquainted with his message, Akil Davis, the head of the bureau’s Los Angeles field office, assured staff members via email on Sunday about his condition.
Late last week, Davis denied media allegations that the FBI leadership team in Los Angeles had been disbanded, stating that the unit was still in place.
Regarding staff members engaged in cases from January 6th, he stated that the agency was attempting to resolve the issue. According to the people who spoke to NBC News, Davis admitted that the reviews were making staff members confused and anxious, but he also mentioned that leadership was working to resolve the issue.
In an unusually direct communication to his colleagues on Sunday, FBI New York field office chief James Dennehy complimented Driscoll, according to a person familiar with the situation. The email was initially reported by the New York Times, but a representative for the FBI’s New York Field Office declined to comment.
A former Marine who is well-liked in the FBI, Dennehy encouraged agents to become involved and commended Driscoll for upholding the agency’s autonomy.
Good individuals are being walked out of the F.B.I. today, and we’re in the midst of our own war,” Dennehy wrote. “And others are being targeted because they did their jobs in accordance with the law and F.B.I. policy.”