- Four months into his tenure, interim U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli is plagued by criticism that he is acting in a hyper-partisan manner to support President Trump’s agenda.
- Essayli’s supporters dismiss those claims, say he is following the law and protecting Californians and argue he should be given the permanent job.
- Critics, including many in the legal and LGBTQ+ communities, fear a permanent appointment would embolden Essayli to act even more aggressively in Trump’s political interests.
When Bill Essayli was appointed interim U.S. attorney for the Los Angeles region in April, many in the former state assemblyman’s Riverside County district were afraid the ambitious Republican lightning rod would be willing to attack a whole range of California policies to please the MAGA base.
They feared that, as the region’s most powerful federal prosecutor, Essayli would bow to the Trump administration and ramp up assaults on queer people, immigrants, voting rights, environmental protections and anyone or anything else that displeased President Trump.
Now, it’s clear they were right to worry, said Jacob Daruvala, an LGBTQ+ advocate from the Inland Empire.
“Essayli is a very specific and terrible threat,” Daruvala said during a recent town hall for the “Stop Essayli” campaign, which is working to block the top prosecutor’s permanent appointment. “He has already shown multiple times that he is willing to use the office in a partisan manner.”
Nearly four months into Essayli’s tenure at the top of one of the nation’s busiest federal prosecutor’s offices, it is perhaps complaints about his partisanship that hound him most.
In the midst of a pitched culture war between the Trump administration and California — in which Essayli has participated in federal lawsuits challenging L.A.’s sanctuary policy, California’s protections for transgender athletes and more — his partisanship has become a central note in conversations about his leadership style, grasp of the law and understanding of the traditional role of U.S. attorneys.
Is he too loyal to Trump? Too bound up in the administration’s battles? Too eager to please his bosses and too inexperienced to know that rushing cases for political points can lead to embarrassing losses in court and a crisis of confidence among his own line prosecutors?
“””complaints about his partisanship”””
LAUGH this is what Capitalist have stated about hyper partisan Socialist bent judges and DA’s for over 40 years now.
All of a sudden it is scary and painful for the political pets of the Left are seeing a more balanced view of law and society!!!!!!
TSK TSK TSK….
Too bad so sad……It is time to get government out of legislative actions.
Chuckle
Enforcing the law is partisan? Sounds like sour grapes and ideology to me.