Obama To Keep All U.S. Attorneys 'For The Time Being'

CNN:

President-elect Obama has asked all U.S. Attorneys to "continue to serve for the time being" and is not demanding immediate wholesale resignations of Bush political appointees, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.

In addition, Obama's transition team has asked current Deputy Attorney General Mark Filip, also a Bush appointee, to serve as Acting Attorney General replacing outgoing Attorney General Michael Mukasey.

Read the whole story: CNN

Comments

[larmarch5]

Obama and Holder will know soon enough from the US attorney's staffs who should go and who should stay. Look for a flood of whistleblowers to come foward in the coming weeks. Look at how Hillary was greeted at Dep. of State. The baddies know their days are numbered and they will be outed by the career civil servants.

[billrott]

Articles on Buchanan's record:

http://www.reason.com/news/show/122263.html
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07079/770820-109.stm
http://www.reason.com/blog/show/130413.html?success=1#lastpost
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Beth_Buchanan
http://www.wpxi.com/news/13366676/detail.html
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06326/740403-85.stm
http://kdka.com/topstories/Brian.Wells.collar.2.389997.html
http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=1112812884&channel=570698209
http://doctordeluca.com/Library/WOD/CriminalCriminalJustice08.pdf
http://select.nytimes.com/2006/01/24/opinion/24tierney.html?_r=1
http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A28537
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2008/09/12/location-privacy-gets-a-boost-in-pennsylvania-ruling/#comments
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2006/11/01/debating-the-thompson-memorandum/#comments
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2008/02/01/obscenity-prosecution-do-you-know-it-when-you-read-it/#comments

[naschkatze]

I just read on the DailyKos that more Bush USAs besides the one in PA are refusing to resign against precedent. I am sick and tired of these trouble-making Republican appointees, including that non-affiliated Republican in Chicago who stirred up the Blagojevich problems before he was even prepared to go to court. Obama has had to bite his tongue too long. Let him take his time replacing the Bush DOJs, but get rid of the trouble-makers who can't play by the rules immediately. Stop their paychecks and take their keys away from them.

[Hilodave]

At first thought it seems like a bad idea...... these Bush appointees aren't to be trusted, but perhaps in true Obama transitionese we should let it play out. It's just like PE Obama to do a in depth review of their records before decides to show them the door.

[PATina]

Even the guy in charge of the Civil Rights Dept. that doesn't like the Civil Rights attorneys and called them names like pinkos???? Even the guy in the Voter Rights Dept that makes fun of people working for voters rights???

I understand not getting rid of everybody right off the bat... but I think these two should be gone ASAP !!!

[tel8034]

Yeah Obama keep them for the time being ..........­..........­. That is until Holder is confirmed and not a momemt longer..

The DOJ needs a total overhaul, and needs to start with a clean slate.....­..........­........ The Bush administration totally ruined this department ..........­..........­.. both in reputation and functionality.

[truegreen]

RELAX PEOPLE !!!! There are over 150 U.S. Attorneys. Their qualifications must be reviewed and confirmed before Obama can start appointing.

[scjk67]

exactly! ya said the word save me from typing. :-)

[citadelgrrl05]

They are going to go he just needs time to find competent people, he better get rid of them in time though!!!

[Cakey4814]

I think this is a bad mistake...

[AgeofReason]

My thoughts exactly.

[naschkatze]

Maybe he will get rid of all of them eventually but unobtrusively and a few at a time so that there is not a hue and cry from across the aisle. The Republicans won't be able to make a big protest over them being released that way, and the public will not be aware of it. Doing it Clinton's way would cause the kind of storm Obama doesn't like.

[Bendersky]

"I was afraid of this on Countdown they pointed this out. That if you want to clean up the politicization of the Justice department and you decide to kick all of them out you are essentially continuing the politicization of the Justice department. "

Wrong! To dump highly partisan, corrupt (or at the least 'tainted') attorneys and replacing them with people who care about true justice is the right thing to do.

Obama should wait a litle while and assign someone to research each and every one of them, dump the ones that are clearly Bushies (most of them) and keep the few that seem to be people of quality.

I know obama is tryign to be bi-partisan, but the republicans have traditionally interpeted this as weakness and liberal guilt something to exploit. Fortunately, he ran such a sharp campaign that it is likely he knows this already.

[williamg]

let me ask you: are each and every on of these attorneys "corrupt'' and/or "tainted"? All of them?

Don't you think Obama should do his due diligence and look at each one individually, and make a decision?

As for your comment about Obama being bipartisan and your claim that republicans will view it as weakness, I say: Get over your paranoia. Aren't you tired of worrying about what the Republicans will think?

To me, THAT is the sign of weakness - constantly worrying about what the Republicans will think. Get some backbone.

[vjoseph]

ABSOLUTELY RIGHT William! I am tired of hearing the Libs worry about what the Rethugs would think

[HallStyle]

Wrong Decision. You should CAN every single one of them right now. That way you can say that this just part of the Regime Change. We don't need any BUSH CRONIES Left in office.

[Poboy]

This is another one of Obama's bad decisions.

Every last one of the US Attorneys should be asked to resign effective January 20, 2009.

Every last one, including Fitzgerald, has been politicized by the Bush In-Justice Dept, leaving every decision made by these US Attorneys suspect.

If they weren't fired, like David Iglesias and Carol Lam , then they held on to their jobs BECAUSE they did the Bush White House's, led by Rove, bidding.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dismissal_of_U.S._attorneys_controversy

Keeping them now will only make removing them later a political act.

This is another strike against Obama.

[1dogs2]

"Keeping them now will only make removing them later a political act."

Not true. Replacing 93 US Attorneys is a time-consuming process, involving the receipt of applications, interviews by the federal district court judges in each jurisdiction and their winnowing of the applicants to 3 in each jurisdiction, forwarding those names to the US Senators of the relevant jurisdiction and the Senators' ranking of the 3 applicants, which is then forwarded to the President for him to act upon. It is never the case that all 93 US Attorneys are replaced by the incoming administration immediately upon taking office. Indeed, that would be impossible.

Asking the present US Attorneys to "continue for the time being" is merely the conventional means of ensuring continuity during a transition period that is necessarily longer than that for other positions. It clearly DOESN'T mean that the present US Attorneys will not be replaced in due course and is not a "strike against Obama."

[Poboy]

The main point of my post was how the Bush administration politicized the Justice Dept. and that keeping the suspect US Attorneys only fuel the cynism already held by many Americans of the Justice Dept staffed by Bush cronies and incompetents.

Continuity is less of a concern than reestablishing the independence of the US Attorneys Offices.

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1597085,00.html

The history of the removal of the US Attorneys.

http://articles.latimes.com/2007/mar/23/nation/na-talking23

Reestablishing the confidence of the American people in the Justice Dept. MUST be a primary goal of the Obama Administration.

[harriscrl3]

I was afraid of this on Countdown they pointed this out. That if you want to clean up the politicization of the Justice department and you decide to kick all of them out you are essentially continuing the politicization of the Justice department.

George Bush had done a number on this country that imo will be felt for a centuries.

Carol

[easarsfield]

augh come on Obama! Some of them need to go IMMEDIATELY. Like Mary Beth Buchanan .

[JohnFromCensornati]

Please tell me that none of them are from Jerry Falwell U.

[305Rider]

Nope, they are from Pat Robertson U.