The Trump transition is attempting to remove US attorneys immediately by replacing them with interim leaders who’d be aligned with the president-elect’s priorities, said six lawyers briefed on the plans.
Transition staffers have been working to identify existing career prosecutors in many of the nation’s 93 law enforcement districts who they’d feel confident would support the president-elect’s law enforcement priorities—including deportations—once elevated as acting US attorneys, said the attorneys. They spoke on condition of anonymity to share internal deliberations.
One attorney familiar with the plan said the transition’s goal was to prevent “counter-revolutionaries” without necessarily choosing actings based on political preferences. Another individual questioned the legality of the plans, saying it potentially violates a civil service statute to redesignate career assistant US attorneys based on partisan ideology.
The transition is prioritizing high-profile districts with importance to Trump, such as offices in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Washington, D.C., Miami, Texas, and California. It’s unclear if the moves would take place on Jan. 20 or in the following few days.
While replacing holdover US attorneys has become the norm early in new administrations, the staffing shakeups would mark a more aggressive timeline than in the past. It’s the latest indication that the second Trump presidency has ambitions of taking rapid actions in its early days.
US attorneys function as the top federal law enforcers in their districts, serving at the pleasure of the president. They often wield significant independence, while still reporting to the deputy attorney general.
A growing list of Biden-appointed US attorneys have been stepping down over the past month, including many announcing plans to resign by Jan. 17. This would make way for their first assistants to take over just before Inauguration and potentially allow them to stay until Trump-nominated chief prosecutors are confirmed by the Senate.
However, the Trump transition is more suspicious of the non-political prosecutors who by default have been bumped up to replace the Biden appointees in recent weeks, the sources said. These interim US attorneys served as top deputies to the former political appointee, and there’s concern among Trump staffers that they could still be loyal to Biden priorities.
That’s why the transition has been placing calls in recent weeks to former Trump DOJ leaders to ask for names of current line prosecutors who’d be equipped to step in on a temporary basis, three sources said. This could also prepare the next administration for the possibility that Senate confirmations could drag out for months of the permanent chief prosecutors, especially in states where Democratic senators could stall the process.
In December, more than 30 House Republicans urged Trump to remove all US attorneys, including former first assistants, at the very start.
“While replacing all 93 US Attorneys with hand-selected interim US Attorneys would be a first, it should be done to turn the page and reconstitute confidence in the Department of Justice,” the lawmakers wrote. “Allowing the First Assistants to serve as the acting US Attorney will delay the much-needed reforms.”
Since the Clinton administration, DOJ leadership has sought resignations from all or nearly all US attorneys in the first few weeks or months after taking office. The Biden administration began directing them to step down on Feb. 9, 2021. The prior Trump White House moved to dismiss the Obama-era US attorneys on March 10, 2017.
Trump has only named US attorney selections in two New York districts. His choice for attorney general, Pam Bondi, has a Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday.
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