Federal Judge Blocks Trump's Firing of Court-Appointed Prosecutor

Chief Judge Stanley Bastian ordered the Trump administration Thursday to reinstate Roger Rogoff as U.S. attorney in Seattle. Trump had fired Rogoff less than an hour after he was sworn in.

• Federal judges appointed Rogoff in July; he took his oath on July 15.
• Trump removed Rogoff via an email titled 'A Message From the President.'
• Bastian granted a preliminary injunction after finding Rogoff met all four required legal standards.
• The court called this a first-of-its-kind separation-of-powers case.

Why it matters: The ruling turns on who controls a court-appointed U.S. attorney — the president or the judiciary.

• Under federal law, when presidential and attorney general appointments lapse, district courts fill vacancies.
• Bastian held the president cannot remove an attorney appointed through that court process.

How 11 sources split on this story

Where they split: The core dispute is whether presidential removal power extends to U.S. attorneys appointed by federal courts rather than by the executive branch.

What’s next: An appeal is expected, most likely before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

• Would an appellate court uphold or reverse the separation-of-powers reasoning used here?
• Does this ruling affect other court-appointed U.S. attorneys in districts where executive appointments have lapsed?