Summary
- Trump extended Sigal Chattah’s interim term in Nevada.
- The move blocks the court from rejecting her permanent
role. - Over 100 retired judges oppose her confirmation.
- Criticized for racial remarks and bias.
- Extension under Vacancies Reform Act, no Senate vote.
The interim position has been held since April
by Chattah, a former Republican National Committeewoman who was born in Israel.
Since Trump has not yet nominated a U.S.
Attorney, the federal court in Nevada would be able to choose a candidate after
her term’s 120-day limit expires on Tuesday.
According to a department spokesman, Chattah was
appointed Acting U.S. Attorney for Nevada by the department under the
federal Vacancies Reform Act.
Chattah announced her new role on X on Tuesday,
adding
“Rinse and repeat: The law is the ONLY thing that makes ALL people
equal.”
Two of Trump’s other U.S. Attorney choices have
been denied by federal judges thus far: Alina Habba, Trump’s former personal
attorney in New Jersey, and John Sarcone in the Northern District of New York.
The Justice Department employed a number of
different legal strategies to maintain them in place in both of those cases.
Attorney General Pam Bondi blocked the federal
court’s decision in Habba’s case by dismissing Desiree Grace, Habba’s first
assistant, who had been selected by the courts to be the state’s top federal
prosecutor.
Defendants in at least one case have requested
that their charges be dropped on the grounds that Habba’s appointment was
illegal, and the move in New Jersey has added some doubt to federal criminal
cases there.
More than 100 retired federal and state judges
this week urged the federal court in Nevada not to permanently appoint Chattah,
citing her history of racially charged comments and her “extreme partisan
bias,” according to a letter seen by Reuters.
“Chattah has frequently used
violence-tinged language suggesting that her political opponent should be
hanging from a crane, that protesters should be shot, and that people should
‘buy ammo’ in response to their grievances,”
wrote the 116 retired judges
in a Monday letter to Andrew Gordon, the chief federal judge in Nevada.
The letter listed examples including Chattah
referring to former Democratic U.S. Representative Jamaal Bowman as an
“antisemitic ghetto rat” and calling Fulton County District Attorney
Fani Willis “so ghetto” and asking:
“Why do we have lawyers like
this who litigate in Ebonics?”
In the past, she has also implied that some
Democratic Jewish members of the US Congress are comparable to contemporary
Nazi accomplices.
Regarding the letter criticizing Chattah, a
Justice Department official did not immediately respond.
What is the significance of Trump extending
Chattah’s role in Nevada?
The significance of President Trump extending
Sigal Chattah’s role as Nevada’s Interim U.S. Attorney lies in his attempt to
prevent a federal court from appointing a replacement and rejecting her
permanent appointment amid rising opposition.
Chattah’s initial 120-day interim term was set
to expire, and without formal nomination and Senate confirmation, the federal
court could have stepped in to name a U.S. Attorney for Nevada. By designating
her as “acting” U.S. Attorney under the federal Vacancies Reform Act,
Trump extends her tenure up to 210 days beyond the interim period.
This move is particularly notable because over
100 retired federal and state judges have urged the court not to confirm
Chattah permanently.
