WASHINGTON –
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is
echoing concerns raised by Democratic colleagues that President Biden’s action
to fire 56 U.S. attorneys could impede ongoing investigations. In a letter to President
Biden, Grassley urged the administration to consider the impacts of removing
each U.S. attorney on their ongoing investigations and consult with home state senators
before terminating them.
“It is
unfortunate that you are taking these actions without replacements announced.
It is also concerning that your administration did not consult with home-state
Senators about this decision and that some of these U.S. Attorneys may be
involved in sensitive investigations,” Grassley
wrote.
Grassley’s
letter follows public concerns
expressed
by Illinois Democratic senators Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin, the chairman
of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Those senators are particularly alarmed by
the announced removal of John Lausch, the U.S. attorney for the Northern
District of Illinois. Lausch is currently supervising a public corruption case
that reportedly could implicate the longtime Illinois House Speaker.
Dear
President Biden,
I read
with some concern that you have decided to ask for the resignation of all
remaining Senate-confirmed U.S. Attorneys with two exceptions. According to
reports those exceptions are U.S. Attorney David Weiss in the District of
Delaware, and of John Durham in the District of Connecticut who will resign
from that post but remain as Special Counsel.
You
are obviously within your rights to do this, but four years ago a similar
action by then-Attorney General Sessions caused my Democratic colleagues to
sound the alarm. Senator Feinstein observed at the time, “Under previous
administrations, orderly transitions allowed U.S. attorneys to leave gradually
as their replacements were chosen. This was done to protect the independence of
our prosecutors and avoid disrupting ongoing federal cases.” Senator Schumer
expressed similar views, saying, “By asking for the immediate resignation of
every remaining U.S. Attorney before their replacements have been confirmed or
even nominated, the President is interrupting ongoing cases and investigations
and hindering the administration of justice.” Senator Warren went so far as to
say, “You can’t fire the rule of law, @realDonaldTrump. You can’t shut down
ongoing investigations by career prosecutors.”
I echo
many of these concerns. It is unfortunate that you are taking these actions
without replacements announced. It is also concerning that your administration
did not consult with home-state Senators about this decision and that some of
these U.S. Attorneys may be involved in sensitive investigations.
My
colleague on the Judiciary Committee, Chairman Durbin, went so far as to put
out a statement regarding the requested resignation of John Lausch in the
Northern District of Illinois. He and Senator Duckworth said they were
“disappointed with the decision to terminate” Mr. Lausch and they urged that he
“be permitted to continue in his position until his successor is confirmed by
the Senate.”
Mr.
Lausch is currently supervising the ComEd public corruption investigation in
Illinois. This significant bribery case is said to potentially implicate
longtime Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan. Mr. Madigan, of course, is widely
regarded as the Democratic political “boss” of Illinois and an ally of former
President Obama. It is therefore especially important that this investigation
be allowed to proceed in a way that does not even provide the appearance of
political interference from Washington.
You
are the President and the President is, as a rule, entitled to an
administration. This includes the Department of Justice. But in the interest of
the rule of law and the confidence of the American people in the law’s
impartial application, I would urge you not to simply fire all of President
Trump’s U.S. Attorneys except for the two most obviously sensitive—Durham and
Weiss. Take the time to do it right. See who has important investigations
ongoing—like Lausch—and make sure that the American People have confidence in
the independence of the Department of Justice.
Sincerely,
Chuck
Grassley
Ranking
Member
Judiciary
Committee
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