The independence of the DOJ has always been perceived as important. A lot of ink was spilt about this during the Trump administration, as they attempted to undermine these norms (e.g.: https://www.americanprogress.org/article/restoring-integrity...), with some degree of success. You may recall Trump's various battles to get the DOJ to do things that the DOJ didn't want to do (and unfortunately, in some cases, he did get his way, but a lot of the time, he did not). One of the key objectives of Project 2025 is to claim control of the operations of the DOJ from the "unaccountable bureaucratic managerial class and radical Left ideologues who have embedded themselves throughout its offices and components": https://static.project2025.org/2025_MandateForLeadership_CHA...