Yates' firing raises questions about tolerance of dissent


              FILE - In this March 24, 2015 file photo, then-Deputy Attorney General nominee Sally Quillian Yates testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. President Donald Trump’s abrupt, late-night firing of the acting attorney general, who had refused to allow the Justice Department to defend his immigration orders in federal court, sends a clear message to his future Cabinet about his tolerance for public dissent.  (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)
FILE - In this March 24, 2015 file photo, then-Deputy Attorney General nominee Sally Quillian Yates testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. President Donald Trump’s abrupt, late-night firing of the acting attorney general, who had refused to allow the Justice Department to defend his immigration orders in federal court, sends a clear message to his future Cabinet about his tolerance for public dissent. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump's abrupt, late-night firing of the acting attorney general sends a message to his future Cabinet about his tolerance for public dissent.

Trump fired Sally Yates after she refused to let the Justice Department defend his immigration orders in court.

The president will soon have in place appointees who will be less likely to publicly disagree with him. But his swift firing of an Obama holdover also shows how he moves aggressively to ensure his directives are carried out, even at agencies like the Justice Department that cherish their independence.

Bill Baer, a Justice official during the Obama administration, says it's worrisome that Trump views the department as a weapon to go after opponents.

Trump spokesman Sean Spicer says the department's job is to execute the president's orders.

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