“Is that good theater for the Republicans? I don’t think so,” said Kevin O’Brien, a partner at Ford O’Brien Landy LLP and a former federal prosecutor. “If Trump is smart, he’ll just be happy to see Smith gone. And the less ado he makes about it, the better.”
Trump could send a message to the legal community that his administration will not give government work to law firms that hire Smith or members of his office, making it difficult for them to return to private practice if they seek to leave the DOJ, which could become an inhospitable workplace for them under Trump.
“None of these [prosecutors] may be the most appetizing people to hire if they’ve made enemies with all the people who end up running the Justice Department,” O’Brien said. “But that’s only one view. We’ll just have to see.”