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Ex-DOJ prosecutor who proclaimed 'this job sucks' will run for Congress
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WaPo
The Justice Department attorney who made headlines for telling a federal judge “this job sucks” at a hearing on President Donald Trump’s immigration arrests in Minnesota says she is planning to run for Congress in November.
In her now-famous outburst, Julie T. Le told U.S. District Judge Jerry W. Blackwell that she felt powerless to compel U.S. immigration officers to follow judicial orders to grant immigrants bond hearings or release them from detention. Blackwell had summoned her and a colleague to court to demand an explanation, or face contempt.
As Le stalked out of the courtroom, she said it flashed across her mind that only legislators had the power to fix the enforcement system that had ignited fear and violence throughout the Twin Cities.
“I was like, ‘Okay, I’m an attorney. I can’t do much at all,’” Le, 47, said in an interview. “Legislators are the only ones that can change the law, or update the laws, or do something, so that we can have this under control.”
Le was fired by the Trump administration within hours of her outburst. Now she is preparing to launch a campaign to run for Congress as a Democrat, challenging Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota).
In her now-famous outburst, Julie T. Le told U.S. District Judge Jerry W. Blackwell that she felt powerless to compel U.S. immigration officers to follow judicial orders to grant immigrants bond hearings or release them from detention. Blackwell had summoned her and a colleague to court to demand an explanation, or face contempt.
As Le stalked out of the courtroom, she said it flashed across her mind that only legislators had the power to fix the enforcement system that had ignited fear and violence throughout the Twin Cities.
“I was like, ‘Okay, I’m an attorney. I can’t do much at all,’” Le, 47, said in an interview. “Legislators are the only ones that can change the law, or update the laws, or do something, so that we can have this under control.”
Le was fired by the Trump administration within hours of her outburst. Now she is preparing to launch a campaign to run for Congress as a Democrat, challenging Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota).
Pretty solid entrant here in the genre of Journalist Politely Letting Interview Subject Hang Herself With Her Own Words
— Jay Willis (@jaywillis.net) 2026-03-12T02:48:21.192Z