In June 2023, Donald J. Trump’s lawyers arrived at Justice Department headquarters, grimly scooped up visitors badges and were ushered upstairs to ask prosecutors for details about Mr. Trump’s imminent indictment over the hoarding of documents at Mar-a-Lago.
Mr. Trump never faced a trial and is now the president. Two members of his defense team have permanent department badges, because they run the agency’s day-to-day operations.
And Mr. Trump, once a target of prosecution by the Justice Department, is scheduled on Friday to deliver a major law-and-order speech in the agency’s great hall — at least as much an expression of conquest and vindication as it is a friendly first visit to a key cabinet department.
If he no longer owns the Trump International Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue, Mr. Trump is using the speech to show he has taken political possession of more valuable real estate just up the street, in the quavering heart of official Washington.
Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House on Thursday that the speech would include his ideas for the department, “the complete gamut” of policy proposals, and his aides said it would include proposals on immigration.
The speech comes as officials have made plans to use wartime legal authorities to accelerate the deportation of undocumented immigrants, a step that could be announced as soon as Friday, according people familiar with the process. The president could also unveil new steps to combat “weaponization” of the department, even as his officials use its powers to punish his enemies and reward his allies.
