Adding more confusion to what was already a bizarre and dramatic standoff, President Trump later claimed that he was “not involved” with firing Berman
Former U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman. Photo: Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images On Saturday, President Trump fired U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman, the top federal prosecutor who leads the powerful the powerful and fiercely independent Southern District of New York, and who has overseen numerous investigations into close associates of the president.
Saturday’s announcement was preceded by a bizarre and dramatic standoff, and the whole episode is both a new low point and a significant new crisis for the Justice Department under the already tumultuous leadership of Barr — who has repeatedly put the interests of President Trump above the rule of law and repeatedly lied about doing so, and who has helped orchestrate a purge of the Trump administration officials who have not demonstrated sufficient loyalty to the president.
“I learned in a press release from the Attorney General tonight that I was ‘stepping down’ as United States Attorney,” Berman said in a statement released by the SDNY. “I have not resigned, and have no intention of resigning, my position, to which I was appointed by the Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.”
The timing of Berman’s ouster — both the attempt on Friday and official act on Saturday — is also highly suspect, as Preet Bharara, Berman’s predecessor whom Trump fired in 2017, and others quickly pointed out on Friday:
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