Giuliani search warrant settles months of internal debate at Justice Department

The question of whether to serve a search warrant for Rudolph W. Giuliani’s records simmered inside the Justice Department in the waning months of the Trump administration, dividing officials in New York and Washington and remaining unresolved for a new leadership team to sort out. The FBI action in New York on Wednesday was especially notable both because of the high-profile nature of the Giuliani investigation and because of the vigorous debate the search warrant question had produced inside the Trump-era Justice Department. Former Justice Department official David Laufman said it would be reasonable for the new leadership team to reassess how legal actions were made, especially if they believed the previous administration reached an incorrect decision “on an important investigative action in a matter of considerable importance.” Stuart Gerson, who served as acting attorney general in the first weeks of the Clinton administration before Janet Reno was confirmed, said it is common for new leaders to make big decisions when they take their positions. Other high-profile Justice Department investigations that Garland inherited from the Trump administration still await decisions, including a tax probe into President Biden’s son, Hunter, and a investigation into potential sex trafficking and public corruption by Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz.