our Norms are a promise that we will fiercely protect the independence of this department from political in interference in our criminal investigations our Norms are a promise that we will not allow this department to be used as a political weapon and our Norms are a promise that we will not allow this nation to become a country where law enforcement is treated as an apparatus of politics over the past three and a half years there has been an escalation of attacks on the Justice Department's career lawyers agents and other Personnel that go far beyond scrutiny criticism and legitimate and necessary oversight of our work these attacks have come in the form of conspir conspiracy theories dangerous falsehoods efforts to bully and intimidate career public servants by repeatedly and publicly singling them out and threats of actual violence through your work you have made clear that the justice department will not be intimidated by these attacks but it is dangerous and outrageous that you have to endure them the work you do every day makes a difference and the way you do that work makes clear that the public servants of the Department of Justice do not Bend to politics and that they will not break under pressure [Applause]