Trump Orders Justice Department to Fight Crime Harder
- One executive action is intended to curb anti-police violence
- Trump signs actions at swearing-in for attorney general
President Donald Trump speaks as Jeff Sessions, U.S. attorney general, listens before being sworn in at the White House in Washington on Feb. 9, 2017.
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/BloombergPresident Donald Trump signed a trio of executive actions on Wednesday directing the Department of Justice to intensify its effort to fight drug-related crime and violence against police officers.
The moves, which Trump announced after swearing in former Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions as attorney general, include the creation of a Justice Department task force dedicated to curbing violent crime, as well as a study of new legislation that could impose tougher mandatory minimum sentences for attacks on law enforcement officers. Trump said he also ordered the Justice Department to partner with the Department of Homeland Security to "break the back of criminal cartels."