Ex-White House Election Official Leaves DOJ Probe of Trump Foes, Sources Say

A second Justice Department lawyer has left a Florida-based investigation examining whether former federal law enforcement and intelligence officials conspired to violate Donald Trump's rights, according to people familiar with the matter.

Kurt Olsen, who joined the Justice Department after serving as a White House election security official, decided to leave the investigation, two sources told Reuters. A third source said Olsen remains at the Justice Department, underscoring uncertainty over the precise nature of his departure from the probe.

Olsen's reported exit comes just over two weeks after Joseph diGenova, who had been overseeing the investigation, resigned following disagreements with Justice Department leadership. The departures have added to questions about the management and direction of a politically sensitive investigation being conducted by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami.

The investigation has examined the U.S. intelligence community's assessment that Russia sought to help Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, as well as the later federal investigation into classified documents recovered from Trump's Mar-a-Lago property after his first presidential term. No criminal charges have been announced from the broader investigation.

Why Kurt Olsen's Departure Matters

Olsen's role had become increasingly visible in the investigation.

Before joining the Justice Department, he worked as a private lawyer and participated in efforts supporting Trump's claims that the 2020 presidential election had been affected by widespread fraud. Those claims were not supported by evidence establishing widespread election fraud. Olsen later served as a White House election security official before moving to the DOJ.

His departure is notable because he had been involved in communications with lawyers representing former CIA Director John Brennan, who is a target of a related investigation.

According to court documents described by the Washington Post and other outlets, Olsen participated in a September call with Brennan's legal team after diGenova's resignation. The discussion concerned a grand jury subpoena and the status of multiple investigations involving Brennan.

The development therefore comes at a particularly important point in the Florida inquiry, as prosecutors continue gathering evidence through grand jury proceedings.

What the DOJ Investigation Is Examining

The Florida investigation is broader than a single allegation involving one former official.

According to Reuters, prosecutors are examining whether federal law enforcement and intelligence officials were involved in a criminal conspiracy that violated Trump's rights. Two major areas are central to the inquiry.

The first concerns the U.S. intelligence assessment surrounding Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election. The second involves the federal investigation into classified documents that were found at Mar-a-Lago after Trump left office following his first term.

The investigation has also generated separate inquiries involving individuals such as Brennan.

Brennan has disputed the allegations against him. His lawyers have sought preservation of Justice Department communications that they say could become relevant if the government eventually brings charges against him. The Justice Department has argued that such requests are premature because Brennan has not been charged and it is not clear that he will be.

That distinction is important: being identified as a target or subject of an investigation does not mean prosecutors have established criminal wrongdoing.

Joseph diGenova's Earlier Departure

Olsen's departure follows the resignation of Joseph diGenova, who had been assigned to oversee the Florida investigation.

DiGenova left the Justice Department earlier in September. Reporting at the time described disagreements over the pace and management of the investigation, although accounts differed over the circumstances surrounding his departure.

Before leaving, diGenova's team had issued a subpoena seeking testimony from Brennan before a federal grand jury in Fort Pierce, Florida. Brennan's attorney said the subpoena required him to appear in October.

After diGenova's resignation, Olsen was among the prosecutors who communicated with Brennan's lawyers about the continuing investigations.

The sequence of events means the DOJ inquiry has now experienced multiple personnel changes while significant investigative activity remains underway.

The Justice Department Says the Investigation Continues

Despite the departures, reporting indicates that the investigation itself has not been closed.

The Washington Post reported that the Justice Department continues to pursue grand jury activity, including matters involving Brennan and former FBI officials. The department has also disputed suggestions that senior officials improperly pressured investigators over the handling of the case.

That leaves an important distinction between personnel changes and the status of the investigation.

Olsen's departure from the inquiry does not by itself terminate the grand jury proceedings or determine whether prosecutors will eventually bring charges. The outcome will depend on evidence gathered by investigators and decisions made by Justice Department officials and prosecutors.

Why the Case Is Politically Significant

The investigation sits at the intersection of several highly contested issues in U.S. politics and law enforcement.

The Russia investigation has remained politically significant since the 2016 presidential election. The later classified-documents case also became one of the most consequential federal investigations involving Trump after his first presidency.

The current DOJ investigation is examining whether actions taken by federal agencies and officials during those earlier episodes amounted to a criminal conspiracy against Trump. That is an allegation being investigated, rather than an established finding.

At the same time, Trump's critics and lawyers representing people under investigation have raised concerns about whether the current proceedings are being conducted for legitimate law-enforcement purposes. The Justice Department has rejected arguments that its investigations are improperly motivated.

Because these competing claims concern an active criminal investigation, their significance cannot be resolved simply by the political affiliations of the people involved.

What Investors and Businesses Should Watch

Although the case is primarily political and legal rather than an immediate corporate or market event, investors may still want to monitor developments because major changes in U.S. political institutions can affect policy and regulatory expectations.

The most relevant indicators are:

Further personnel changes: Additional departures or appointments could provide information about how the investigation is being reorganised.

Grand jury activity: Subpoenas and testimony can indicate whether prosecutors are expanding or narrowing particular lines of inquiry, although grand jury proceedings are generally confidential.

Court filings: Public filings in related cases may provide the clearest available information about disputes over subpoenas, evidence preservation and investigative authority.

Potential charges: No criminal charges have been announced from the broader Florida investigation. Any future charging decisions would materially change the legal status of the matter.

DOJ leadership decisions: The department's decisions regarding investigators, resources and the scope of the inquiry will remain important to understanding its direction.

The Broader Institutional Issue

The latest departure illustrates the difficulty of conducting politically sensitive criminal investigations inside a federal law-enforcement agency.

Investigators must work within legal and evidentiary standards while examining events involving senior political figures, former intelligence officials and previous presidential administrations. Personnel changes can therefore attract significant attention even when the underlying investigation continues.

For now, Olsen's departure does not establish whether the Florida investigation will expand, narrow or ultimately produce criminal charges. The available reporting instead shows an inquiry continuing amid changes among the lawyers handling it and ongoing legal disputes involving people under investigation.

The next major developments are likely to come through additional court filings, grand jury activity and decisions by DOJ leadership about the personnel and scope of the probe.

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