when was the last time a president fired an attorney general

When did the Department of Justice order the dismissal of attorneys?

Jan. 30, 2017 On Monday evening, President Donald Trump fired acting Attorney General Sally Yates after she refused to comply with his executive …

Why were attorneys fired from the Department of Justice?

Jan 31, 2017 · The last time a president fired someone in the attorney general's office, it was Nixon at the height of the Watergate scandal. Last night, it …

Is it weird to ask an attorney general to leave office?

Jan 31, 2017 · Ms. Yates’s order was a remarkable rebuke by a government official to a sitting president, and it recalled the so-called Saturday Night Massacre in 1973, when President Richard M. Nixon fired his...

Why did Karl Rove resign as Attorney General?

The last major crisis between a president and his attorney general occurred during the Watergate era under President Richard Nixon. In 1973, in what would become known as the Saturday Night...

Can the president fire the attorney general of the United States?

The President of the United States has the authority to appoint U.S. Attorneys, with the consent of the United States Senate, and the President may remove U.S. Attorneys from office. In the event of a vacancy, the United States Attorney General is authorized to appoint an interim U.S. Attorney.

Can a US attorney general be impeached?

Attorneys General. While impeachment proceedings against cabinet secretaries is an exceedingly rare event, no office has provoked the ire of the House of Representatives than that of Attorney General. During the first fifth of the 21st century, no less than three Attorneys General have been subjected to the process.

Does the US attorney general report to the president?

The United States attorney general (AG) leads the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief lawyer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all legal matters.

How many attorney generals are there in the US?

Of the 50 Attorneys General, 25 do not have a formal provision specifying the number of terms allowed. Of the 44 elected attorneys general, all serve four-year terms with the exception of Vermont, who serves a two-year term. 11 face a two term limit, otherwise unspecified.

How is attorney general removed?

He can be removed by the President at any time. He can quit by submitting his resignation only to the President. Since he is appointed by the President on the advice of the Council of Ministers, conventionally he is removed when the council is dissolved or replaced.

Who can remove the president from office?

In the case of presidential impeachment trials, the chief justice of the United States presides. The Constitution requires a two-thirds vote of the Senate to convict, and the penalty for an impeached official upon conviction is removal from office.

Who was the last U.S. Attorney General?

List of U.S. attorneys generalAttorney GeneralYears of serviceMerrick Garland2021-PresentLoretta Lynch2015-2017Eric Holder2009-2015Michael B. Mukasey2007-200982 more rows

Who was attorney general in the 1980s?

25, 1985 – August 12, 1988: Edwin Meese, a Republican from California, was appointed U.S. attorney general by President Ronald Reagan.

What power does the attorney general have?

The NSW Attorney General is the legal advisor to the Government of NSW. The Attorney General is responsible for representing the State and may act on its behalf in all legal proceedings in which the State is a party. preserves civil liberties.

Who is the highest law officer?

Advocate General of the State is the highest law officer in the state. The Constitution of India (Article 165) has provided for the office of the Advocate General for the states.

Who was the first female Attorney General of the United States?

Janet RenoOfficial portrait, c. 1990s78th United States Attorney GeneralIn office March 12, 1993 – January 20, 2001PresidentBill Clinton16 more rows

Who determines the salary of Attorney General?

the PresidentDraft Article 63 (4) The Attorney-General shall hold office during the pleasure of the President, and shall receive such remuneration as the President may determine.

Why are emails about the firing of attorneys lost?

White House spokesman Scott Stanzel stated that some of the emails that had involved official correspondence relating to the firing of attorneys may have been lost because they were conducted on Republican party accounts and not stored properly. "Some official e-mails have potentially been lost and that is a mistake the White House is aggressively working to correct." said Stanzel, a White House spokesman. Stonzel said that they could not rule out the possibility that some of the lost emails dealt with the firing of U.S. attorneys. For example, J. Scott Jennings, an aide to Karl Rove communicated with Justice Department officials "concerning the appointment of Tim Griffin, a former Rove aide, as U.S. attorney in Little Rock, according to e-mails released in March, 2007. For that exchange, Jennings, although working at the White House, used an e-mail account registered to the Republican National Committee, where Griffin had worked as a political opposition researcher."

What did the change in the law do to the Attorney General?

The change in the law undermined the confirmation authority of the Senate and gave the Attorney General greater appointment powers than the President, since the President's U.S. Attorney appointees are required to be confirmed by the Senate and those of the Attorney General did not require confirmation.

What was the Inspector General Report on the 2008 firings?

On September 29, 2008 the Justice Department's Inspector General (IG) released a report on the matter that found most of the firings were politically motivated and improper.

What was the process used to fire the first seven attorneys and two others dismissed around the same time?

A subsequent report by the Justice Department Inspector General in October 2008 found that the process used to fire the first seven attorneys and two others dismissed around the same time was "arbitrary", "fundamentally flawed" and "raised doubts about the integrity of Department prosecution decisions".

Why were some of the attorneys targeted for dismissal?

Allegations were that some of the attorneys were targeted for dismissal to impede investigations of Republican politicians or that some were targeted for their failure to initiate investigations that would damage Democratic politicians or hamper Democratic-leaning voters.

What did the IG report say about the firings?

The IG's report contained "substantial evidence" that party politics drove a number of the firings, and IG Glenn Fine said in a statement that Gonzales had "abdicated his responsibility to safeguard the integrity and independence of the department.".

Why was Kevin Ryan fired?

Kevin Ryan (R) Though described as "loyal to the Bush administration," he was allegedly fired for the possible controversy that negative job performance evaluations might cause if they were released. John McKay (R) Was given a positive job evaluation 7 months before he was fired.

Overview

Reactions and congressional investigation

The initial reaction was from the senators of the affected states. In a letter to Gonzales on January 9, 2007, Senators Feinstein (D, California) and Leahy (D, Vermont; Chair of the Committee) of the Senate Judiciary Committee expressed concern that the confirmation process for U.S. attorneys would be bypassed, and on January 11, they, together with Senator Pryor (D, Arkansas), introduced legislation "to prevent circumvention of the Senate's constitutional prerogative to con…

Issues in brief

Fallout

Replacement of the U.S. Attorneys

Aftermath

See also

Notes