Attorney General Pam Bondi just fired the Justice Department’s top ethics official, Joseph Tirrell—an experienced public servant who advised senior DOJ leaders on legal ethics and professional conduct.

He’s only the latest in a string of ethics watchdogs removed from their posts since Bondi took office.

Tirrell had spent more than two decades in federal service, including time at the FBI and as director of the DOJ’s Departmental Ethics Office. His job was to ensure that justice was done ethically and without political interference.

His removal, along with the emptying of the Office of Professional Responsibility, leaves one of the most powerful federal agencies with no clear internal accountability system.

This is not just an internal staffing issue. It’s a warning sign.

Without independent ethics officials, federal prosecutors have no safe channel to report violations. The public has no watchdogs inside the system. And the line between political loyalty and legal obligation becomes dangerously blurred.

We’re calling on Congress to take immediate action by demanding:

• The reinstatement of independent ethics leadership at the DOJ
• Full transparency about the reasons behind recent firings
• Public hearings into the dismantling of internal accountability offices

Our democracy depends on a Department of Justice that serves the law—not political power. Reinstate its ethical guardrails now.