White House: Trump signed off on Barr request to dismiss U.S. Attorney Berman

[June 23, 2020]  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump signed off on a request by Attorney General William Barr to dismiss Geoffrey Berman, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, the White House said on Monday, contradicting Trump's initial assertion that he had not been involved.

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said the move was made to make way for U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Jay Clayton to take the job.

Trump initially told reporters on Saturday that he had not had been involved in the effort, despite Barr's statement that he had. McEnany said Barr took the lead but the president was involved.

The firing of Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, was the latest in a series of moves by Barr that critics say aim to benefit Trump politically and undermine the independence of the Justice Department.

Berman’s office, known for prosecuting the most high-profile terrorism cases, Wall Street financial crimes and government corruption, has not shied from taking on figures in Trump’s orbit, including Rudolph Giuliani, the president's attorney.

The dispute began late on Friday when Barr announced Berman was stepping down and would be replaced by Clayton, prompting Berman to issue a statement saying he refused to resign.

"When Berman chose to respond in the way that he did, he (Barr) came to the president and the president agreed and fired this individual, Mr. Berman," McEnany said.

Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, speaks during a news conference announcing charges against attorney Michael Avenatti, who represented adult film star Stormy Daniels in her legal battles against U.S. President Donald Trump, with extorting more than $20 million from Nike according to a criminal complaint filed by federal authorities in New York, U.S., March 25, 2019. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File Photo

Trump told Fox News on Saturday he approved Barr's request, and said he did not know Giuliani was being investigated by Berman, although he had read that recently.

Asked if Barr said why he wanted to fire Berman, Trump said: "We spent very little time talking about it, but I have a lot of respect for Attorney General Barr."

Berman agreed to step down on Saturday after Barr backtracked from his plan to hand pick the acting U.S. attorney, allowing Berman’s deputy, Audrey Strauss, to take the reins.

(Reporting by Steve Holland and Jeff Mason; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Dan Grebler)

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