U.S. attorney in Western WA, fired by Trump after 54 minutes, reinstated by judge - The Seattle Times
A federal judge has reinstated Roger Rogoff as the U.S. attorney for Western Washington after he was fired by President Trump shortly after his appointment. The judge ruled that the president lacked the authority to terminate a U.S. attorney appointed by district judges under specific statutory provisions.
Why it matters
This case highlights a significant legal conflict regarding executive power versus judicial appointments and the interpretation of the Appointments Clause of the Constitution.
In July, Roger Rogoff was Western Washington’s new U.S. attorney for less than an hour before President Donald Trump swiftly fired him via email.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Stanley Bastian granted a preliminary injunction and reinstated Rogoff as U.S. attorney — retroactively to the day he was appointed on July 15 — saying Trump had no authority to terminate him and ordering the president and the Justice Department not to interfere with Rogoff’s duties.
It’s the latest in the tug-of-war over who gets to be the federal government’s top attorney in Western Washington.
The district’s 17 sitting federal judges appointed Rogoff when Trump had failed to formally nominate his own pick for U.S. attorney. Instead, Trump appointed Charles Neil Floyd as interim about a year ago and later used a work-around to keep him in the spot as “first assistant” U.S. attorney.
Also covering this story
One other newsroom covered this event. We read that version too.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in