President Donald Trump says he has not decided whether Jeanine Pirro will remain the top federal prosecutor in Washington, while Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Wednesday that if the president wants to remove her, the decision is his alone.
The comments leave Pirro’s job in limbo days after her office dropped the highest-profile criminal case tied to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
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Pirro’s office last week moved to dismiss felony charges against former Olympian David Hearn and three other defendants after prosecutors concluded newly obtained evidence showed the damage to the newly renovated Reflecting Pool was caused by problems with the installation of the pool lining, not criminal vandalism.
Trump sticks with vandalism claim
The president is rejecting that conclusion.
Speaking with reporters Tuesday, Trump said he told Pirro during a White House meeting earlier this week that he disagreed with her decision to abandon the case. Asked whether she would remain U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, he said he had not yet “made a determination.”
“Everybody saw the vandalism, all you have to do is look at the tape,” Trump told reporters. “So certainly when there was vandalism, it was actually in my opinion, major vandalism. And I told [Pirro] I was not happy.”
Pirro has defended the dismissals, saying prosecutors learned the damage resulted from overspraying and delamination during the contractor’s work rather than anything the defendants did. She has also accused Interior Department officials of failing to provide critical information early in the investigation, according to ABC News.
Blanche leaves no doubt who decides
Blanche was asked Wednesday whether removing a U.S. attorney over a charging decision could affect prosecutors handling future cases. He declined to discuss the Reflecting Pool prosecution itself and instead said that personnel decisions rest with the president.
“Hypothetically if the president chose to fire a United States Attorney, it turns out he’s allowed to do that because he’s president of the United States,” Blanche said. “If President Trump wanted to fire anybody within his administration, he understands he has the power to do that.”
Blanche also defended Pirro’s work, calling her office “phenomenal” and saying she was “doing a great job,” even as Trump continues to criticize her handling of the case.
Senate vote could hinge on two Republicans
Blanche’s remarks came as the Senate prepares to vote on whether to confirm him permanently as attorney general.
His path became tighter Tuesday after Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, announced she would oppose his nomination, citing several actions he took while serving as acting attorney general, including his role in negotiating the Trump administration’s taxpayer-funded “anti-weaponization” compensation fund.
“Mr. Blanche has taken several actions that have further eroded the Department’s independence,” Collins said. “And that is the basis for my vote to oppose his confirmation.”
With Republicans holding only a narrow majority, Blanche can afford to lose one more GOP senator.
As of Thursday morning, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska had not publicly said how they would vote, though Politico reports the two met with Blanche in the Capitol basement Wednesday.
The two lawmakers will likely be the determining factor on whether his nomination reaches the finish line before the Senate leaves for its August recess on Friday.