The Trump administration, which has been moving like a juggernaut across the political landscape, has hit a land mine.

The decision by Trump’s Justice Department to halt the prosecution of New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) has caused uproar.

Adams had been due to stand trial in April on charges of bribery, wire fraud and soliciting illegal campaign contributions.

But the mayor has become an unlikely political bedfellow of the new president. Adams journeyed to Mar-a-Lago in Florida for lunch with Trump just before the inauguration, attended the inauguration and — just as importantly — has been echoing Trump’s language about weaponized and politically motivated prosecutions.

On Monday, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove told prosecutors they were being “directed to dismiss” the charges against Adams. Bove previously served as one of the personal lawyers defending Trump during the Stormy Daniels hush money trial.

His directive over Adams was the spark that lit a much bigger fire than expected. And it came at a time when Trump has seemed to be at the apex of his power.

The first shock came when the acting lead federal prosecutor in Manhattan, Danielle Sassoon, tendered her resignation.

Sassoon had only been in the job for about three weeks, but she has impeccable conservative credentials as a member of the Federalist Society and former law clerk to the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

Earlier this month, Sassoon penned a Wall Street Journal op-ed criticizing former President Biden for many of the commutations he issued late in his term.

Now, in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Sassoon said the Adams deal would set “a breathtaking and dangerous precedent” — one that was tantamount to “using the criminal process to control the behavior of a political figure.”

© The Hill