Habba knocks Grassley after judge rules she lacks legal authority

Source: The Hill

08/22/25 8:06 AM ET


Alina Habba, the acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, knocked Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Thursday, after a federal judge ruled she lacks the authority to serve as the Garden State’s top federal prosecutor.

“No. 1, I was the nominee to become the U.S. attorney. And [Democratic New Jersey Sens.] Cory Booker and Andy Kim — who I have never, to this day, spoken to in my life, despite my attempts to meet them — have truly, truly done us a disservice,” Habba said during an appearance on Fox News’s “Hannity.”

“And frankly, same with Sen. Grassley by holding up a traditional blue slip, not a law, and not allowing a lot of the president’s picks to go through and be voted on by Senate,” she told host Sean Hannity. “I didn’t even get to that point.” Habba continued, “Then, fast-forward. It goes to the judges; 17 federal judges in the state of New Jersey, 15 of which are Obama and Biden-appointed, that just, like, frankly — [as] we saw with [New York Attorney General Letitia] James — try to use their seat for political motivation.”

U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann ruled Thursday evening that Habba was made the state’s federal prosecutor through a “novel series of legal and personnel moves.” “Faced with the question of whether Ms. Habba is lawfully performing the functions and duties of the office of the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey, I conclude that she is not,” Brann said in his ruling.

Read more: https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/5465161-alina-habba-chuck-grassley-new-jersey-ruling/