The Department of Justice continued trying to subpoena journalists' communications records even as Biden was saying his administration would not do this.

One can never rule out lying by a politician, but another explanation seems plausible: institutional inertia. People appointed by the bully may still be in their positions, and committing sabotage to serve him. Others may still be following orders they received which reflected his policies.

The DOJ recently said it would not do this any more, so it looks like Biden took the necessary action to overcome the bully's policies.