President Donald Trump nominated Alina Habba to remain as U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, the Daily Caller reported. Habba was one of Trump's personal attorneys and made waves after arresting Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and bringing charges against another Democratic lawmaker.
In March, Habba was sworn into the interim position but will require formal confirmation in the Senate to remain. At the time she was first appointed to the position, Trump praised Habba for her success in representing him in his numerous civil cases.
The president promised that Habba would serve well in the position. "Alina will lead with the same diligence and conviction that has defined her career, and she will fight tirelessly to secure a Legal System that is both 'Fair and Just' for the wonderful people of New Jersey," Trump said on his Truth Social.
In May, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested for allegedly attempting to accompany New Jersey Democratic Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, Robert Menendez, and LaMonica McIver into the Delaney Hall immigrant detention facility. They showed up without first asking for permission for a tour.
The lawmakers were barred from entry, and Baraka got into an argument with agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He was arrested and later charged with trespassing, though the charges were eventually dropped.
Video of the altercation made the rounds on social media, showing Baraka, who made Newark a so-called sanctuary city for illegal immigrants, being arrested by ICE agents. Habba shared news of his arrest to X, formerly Twitter, at the time.
"The Mayor of Newark, Ras Baraka, committed trespass and ignored multiple warnings from Homeland Security Investigations to remove himself from the ICE detention center in Newark, New Jersey this afternoon. He has been taken into custody," Habba said in her post.
"NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW," Habba added. The charges against McIver remained as she allegedly "assaulted, impeded, and interfered with law enforcement" while trying to disrupt ICE operations.
The GOP has a slight majority in the Senate and could confirm Habba, though Democrats will surely object to her nomination. She will have to contend with the aftermath of Baraka's stunt and the ensuing arrest and lawsuit.
According to NBC News, Baraka, who is also running for governor of New Jersey, is suing Habba over what occurred during the dention facility stunt. The lawsuit alleges that the security guard who works for a private prison company contracted to run Delaney Hall had admitted Baraka in an attempt to quell an unruly crowd that was gathering to protest.
It was after that point that Baraka says 20 agents from Homeland Security, "many armed and masked, descended on the Mayor and members of Congress without any attempt to calm fears or ensure peace." Barak believes he was arrested "without probable cause."
Meanwhile, the Department of Justice sued other New Jersey sanctuary cities, including Paterson, Hoboken, Jersey City, and Newark, which Baraka has also taken issue with. "What we refuse to do is turn our city into an arm of federal immigration enforcement, which the courts have already ruled is not our role," he said.
The Democrats are enraged that Habba could remain in this position, but Republicans are cheering her actions. She has demonstrated that she is ready to do the job that Trump has promised to do when it comes to illegal immigration.
