Some Justice and FBI officials, though, have argued internally that the silence is harmful to the department’s and the public’s interest, in part because Trump and allies have filled the void.

On Wednesday, the department avoided questions about the Trump search by issuing a recorded video statement on a major criminal case, charging an Iranian military official with trying to assassinate John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser.

The video statement from Matt Olsen, assistant attorney general for National Security, and Larissa Knapp, executive assistant director for the FBI’s national security branch, was unusual.

Such a high-profile case would normally be the subject of an attorney general press conference. But having a press conference this week likely would be dominated by questions about Mar-a-Lago.