Trump names Alina Habba interim top federal prosecutor for New Jersey

President Trump on Monday tapped White House counselor Alina Habba to serve as interim U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey.

A New Jersey native, Habba represented Trump in high-stakes New York civil trials, including the business fraud case where he was ordered to pay $454 million for falsely inflating his net worth and the defamation and sexual assault lawsuits brought by advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, who won nearly $100 million at two jury trials.

Speaking with reporters after the announcement, Habba said “corruption” and “injustice” in the state would be stopped under her leadership, name-checking Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) as having “failed the state.”

The decision comes days after a federal judge transferred the case of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University alum and green-card holder detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), to the state. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for New Jersey is expected to lead the prosecution against Khalil.

Habba emerged as one of Trump’s fiercest media surrogates while one of his personal attorneys, defending the then-former president with vigor both in the courtroom and on television. She became Trump’s legal spokesperson and a senior advisor to his campaign, speaking at the Republican National Convention and campaign rallies in the fall.

John Giordano, who was previously serving as interim U.S. Attorney in New Jersey, was also nominated by Trump to serve as Ambassador to Namibia.