The Counterintelligence and Export Control Section at the Department of Justice handles some of the nation’s most sensitive cases — cases like Russian spy operations, China stealing military technology and Americans leaking classified information. But in recent weeks, the 40-lawyer roster has shrunk to 27, with the team losing most of its top lawyers and a prosecutor with no experience on national security cases taking the helm.
“The magnitude of the loss of attorneys in CES is potentially very damaging for the national security of the United States,” said David Laufman, who led the team from late 2014 until early 2018. “There is a steady battle rhythm of counterintelligence threats from a range of notorious bad actors, particularly China, Russia and Iran.”
Laufman added that President Donald Trump’s administration has “crippled” the workforce necessary to combat those threats, “not only at the line-attorney level but by supervisory officials at the front office at the National Security Division, who have developed a fine-tuned judgment over the years about how to use the legal tools available to counter those threats.”