Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer on Monday demanded the investigation into the “corrupt firing” of Geoffrey Berman, who was ousted this weekend from serving as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, which includes Manhattan.
Mr. Schumer, New York Democrat, sent letters to Justice Department Inspector Inspector General Michael Horowitz and the head of the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility, Jeffrey Ragsdale, officially requesting a joint review into the matter.
“I ask that you review the reason for the removal of U.S. Attorney Berman and whether he was removed for partisan political purposes, to influence an investigation or prosecution or to retaliate for his actions in any specific investigation or prosecution,” Mr. Schumer wrote.
Mr. Berman stepped down from the position Saturday after he was fired by President Trump. Attorney General William P. Barr late Friday sought to fire Mr. Berman but he refused to leave, setting up a brief standoff between his office and the Department of Justice.
Democrats, including Mr. Schumer, have alleged Mr. Berman was ousted to undercut investigations his office is conducting into Mr. Trump and some of his associates.
“As the Attorney General was not truthful when he initially represented that U.S. Attorney Berman was ‘stepping down,’ this corrupt firing cannot be explained by cause and gives the impression that the president interfered in ongoing criminal investigations into himself and his associates,” Mr. Schumer wrote. “To help restore confidence in and prevent further abuses to the administration of justice, the American people deserve to know the truth.”
Mr. Schumer cited in the letter similar investigations in 2006 during President George W. Bush’s second administration, when several U.S. attorneys said they were forced to resign by senior Justice Department officials. The investigation ultimately turned up no wrongdoing.
“At the conclusion of that investigation, your offices found that the removal of these U.S. Attorneys and the controversy it created severely damaged the credibility of the Department of Justice and raised doubts about the integrity of Department prosecutive decisions,” Mr. Schumer said.
