In a significant development, Judge Jeanine Pirro has stepped in to halt FBI Director Kash Patel’s recent wave of dismissals. The U.S. Attorney for Washington D.C. argued that removing four seasoned FBI agents would disrupt their active investigations, as reported by the New York Times. This move sets the stage for another confrontation between two of President Donald Trump’s appointees, Pirro and Patel, both tasked with intensifying crime-fighting efforts. Pirro, a former Fox News personality, now serves as a prosecutor in the nation’s capital, while Patel leads national law enforcement. This incident is the latest in a series of internal tensions within the administration.

Patel has previously faced disagreements with Attorney General Pam Bondi over the management of high-profile cases, such as those involving Jeffrey Epstein’s files. Similarly, differences have arisen in immigration policy discussions, with Trump’s Border Czar Tom Homan and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem expressing conflicting views. The FBI has been under intense scrutiny since the new administration took office, with critics suggesting Patel was appointed to eliminate any perceived adversaries of Trump within the agency.

This week, four agents involved in former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into Trump were informed of their impending termination from the FBI. However, their job status remains uncertain due to Pirro’s intervention. These terminations are part of Patel’s ongoing removal of agents connected to cases about the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. According to Reuters, the agents identified are Jeremy Desor, Jamie Garman, Blaire Toleman, and David Geist.

Desor in particular was targeted in recent days on social media after Republican Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley publicized 1,000 pages of subpoenas from Smith’s investigation, which proved Trump’s attempts to stay in power after losing the 2020 presidential election. Toleman and Geist had their firings reversed after they were issued by Patel’s FBI, Reuters reported on Monday. And sources claimed that several other agents were fired Monday but had their terminations rescinded.

The FBI did not respond to a request for comment and the DOJ referred the Daily Mail to the US Attorney’s office for DC, which also did not immediately respond. Dozens of FBI agents, prosecutors and other personnel who worked on Smith’s investigation or handled cases involving in the January 6 attack have been fired from the Justice Department since Trump took office.

Grassley told Reuters that he is releasing information about agents working these cases because ‘the public has a right to know how the government’s spending their hard-earned tax dollars, and if agents were engaged in wrongdoing they ought to be held accountable.’ ‘Transparency brings accountability,’ he insisted.

Patel has already raged against the silence of ‘supposed allies’ after they did not rush to his defense amid allegations he improperly used a government jet to attend an event with his girlfriend Alexis Wilkins amid the government shutdown. Additionally, it’s been widely reported by the Daily Mail and other outlets that there are tensions between the leadership at FBI and the DOJ. It appears the latest action by Pirro could set up even more interagency showdowns.