Massachusetts U.S. attorney Rachael Rollins plans to resign following multiple federal probes being opened into her appearance at a DNC fundraiser alongside Jill Biden last year.
Attorney Michael Bromwich — a former Department of Justice inspector general representing Rollins — confirmed to the Associated Press that she will submit a letter of resignation to President Joe Biden by close of business on Friday. Bromwich explained that Rollins understands that her presence has become a distraction and will make herself available to answer questions after the dust settles.
Last year, the DOJ’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG), an internal watchdog that probes fraud, abuse, and other violations of the DOJ’s policies, opened an investigation into Rollins — an unusual move given her high-ranking law-enforcement position. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel, another watchdog, is also investigating her.
Both offices are probing the U.S. attorney’s attendance at a July 2022 DNC fundraiser alongside first lady Jill Biden. The Hatch Act prevents government officials from engaging in partisan politics while in office. After her attendance at the fundraiser, Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a memo to employees that the Department of Justice will no longer allow political appointees to go to fundraisers and other campaign events. “It is critical that we hold ourselves to the highest ethical standards to avoid even the appearance of political influence as we carry out the department’s mission,” Garland wrote.
Inspector General Michael Horowitz is looking into Rollins’s use of her personal cellphone to conduct Department of Justice business, which raises security concerns. Furthermore, the Massachusetts U.S. attorney is being probed for a trip she took to California to speak at an entertainment-industry gathering. An outside group paid for Rollins’s trip despite the fact Department of Justice employees are not supposed to accept payments for travel. Rollins was instructed to pay back the group.
Both offices have yet to release their respective reports.
Rollins’s nomination to the U.S. attorney post was fiercely opposed by Senate Republicans in 2021. Her progressive approach as district attorney for Suffolk County, which includes Boston, was a sticking point. Among other things, Rollins decided not to prosecute certain low-level crimes such as shoplifting.
The upper chamber deadlocked 50-50. Vice President Kamala Harris intervened to break the tie and secure Rollins the Massachusetts U.S. attorney post.
On Tuesday, Senator Tom Cotton (R., Ark.), a fierce critic of the prosecutor back in 2021, wrote on Twitter that he had warned his Democratic colleagues that Rollins “wasn’t only a pro-criminal ideologue, but also had a history of poor judgment and ethical lapses.”
“Now that she has resigned in disgrace, the Senate should turn its attention to the corrupt, pro-criminal ideologues at the highest ranks of the Department of Justice,” Cotton added.