Curious Fallout from Trump Appointee’s Partial Disqualification

Hanging over my desk is my 40-year-old commission to act as a federal prosecutor. Scanning it this morning, I was reminded that, although I was hired by the Southern District of New York’s then–U.S. attorney, Rudy Giuliani, to perform the duties of an assistant United States attorney (AUSA), my commission was signed by then–Attorney General Ed Meese.

It seems like a technical point that the authority of AUSAs to prosecute crimes in a federal district comes from the Justice Department, not the presidentially appointed district U.S. attorney. With President Trump’s crusade to staff the nation’s 94 federal districts with loyalist prosecutors who may not be confirmable, we’re beginning to grasp that this technical distinction is quite significant.

About the Author

Andrew C. McCarthy

Andrew C. McCarthy is a senior fellow at National Review Institute, an NR contributing editor, and author of Ball of Collusion: The Plot to Rig an Election and Destroy a Presidency.

Featured Tags

Manage following

Rudy Giuliani

Donald Trump

Department of Justice

Hanging over my desk is my 40-year-old commission to act as a federal prosecutor. Scanning it this morning, I was reminded that, although I was hired by the Southern District of New York’s then–U.S. attorney, Rudy Giuliani, to perform the duties of an assistant United States attorney (AUSA), my commission was signed by then–Attorney General Ed Meese.

It seems like a technical point that the authority of AUSAs to prosecute crimes in a federal district comes from the Justice Department, not the presidentially appointed district U.S. attorney. With President Trump’s crusade to staff the nation’s 94 federal districts with loyalist prosecutors who may not be confirmable, we’re beginning to grasp that this technical distinction is quite significant.

About the Author

Andrew C. McCarthy

Andrew C. McCarthy is a senior fellow at National Review Institute, an NR contributing editor, and author of Ball of Collusion: The Plot to Rig an Election and Destroy a Presidency.