Judges want to peek under the hood at the Justice Department, setting up another showdown with Trump

(CNN) — The Justice Department is facing several court orders that land it in a position it often seeks to avoid: Revealing the private statements of its top political leaders.

Judges’ attempts to confidentially review executive branch records and hold hearings where Justice Department attorneys could take the stand are bearing down in the coming days.

In one case, regarding the migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Justice Department is fighting to keep Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche from having to testify about prosecutorial decision-making in a hearing next month.

And this week, federal Judge Cameron McGowan Currie will look closer at Eastern District of Virginia US Attorney Lindsey Halligan’s work with a grand jury before the recent indictment of Trump political opponents James C