Are U.S. attorneys regularly removed from office at the direction of the White House?

[sabra]

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-qampa14mar14,1,1791626.story?coll=la-news-a_section&ctrack=1&cset=true

A primer on U.S. attorneys
By David G. Savage, Times Staff Writer
March 14, 2007

The controversy over the Justice Department's dismissal of eight U.S. attorneys has turned the spotlight on the normally quiet process by which the federal government selects its top prosecutors. Here are some questions and answers on that process:


<snip>

Are U.S. attorneys removed when a new president takes office?

Yes. Upon taking office, most presidents choose a new slate of U.S. attorneys. However, U.S. attorneys may stay on for a time if they are in the midst of a major investigation or prosecution.

...

Are U.S. attorneys regularly removed from office at the direction of the White House?

No. Officials of past Republican and Democratic administrations say they were unaware of an instance when a large group of U.S. attorneys was dismissed at once.


Do U.S. attorneys carry out the political wishes of the White House?

Most lawyers draw a sharp distinction between policies and partisan politics. The White House or the Justice Department could tell U.S. attorneys to bring more prosecutions for drugs, pornography or immigration violations without raising eyebrows. However, they say it would be disturbing for a Republican president or his advisors to press a U.S. attorney to bring charges against a Democratic official, or vice versa.

"They take seriously their oath of office that forbids political partisanship," said Harvard law professor Philip B. Heymann, a deputy attorney general in the Clinton administration. "It would be destructive for our system if U.S. attorneys saw themselves as owing their first loyalty to the party that appointed them."

[Poiuyt]

1. Thanks for that!

[sabra]

2. comes in handy when debating a Freeper :-)