The top federal prosecutor in Manhattan has agreed to step aside, clearing the way for President Donald Trump on Tuesday to install his nominee as interim United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, yet another shake-up for the nation’s most prominent federal prosecutor’s office
Matthew Podolsky, who has agreed to step down, took over for Danielle Sassoon, who in February resigned in protest of the Justice Department’s order to drop corruption charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams.
Sassoon had been named interim U.S. attorney by Trump when the president fired Edward Kim, who assumed the role during the change in administrations.
Trump’s nominee, Jay Clayton, will serve in an interim capacity for up to four months until confirmed by the Senate or appointed by federal judges in Manhattan. Clayton was the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission during Trump’s first term in office.
Before leading the SEC, Clayton was a partner at New York law firm Sullivan & Cromwell and worked with Wall Street firms and other corporations to navigate federal regulations.
Trump tried to install Clayton during his first term but then-U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman refused to resign until then-Attorney General Bill Barr agreed to replace him with a trusted deputy.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer recently signaled his intent to block Clayton’s nomination over frustration with Trump, who he said “has no fidelity to the law.”
“Donald Trump has made clear he has no fidelity to the law and intends to use the Justice Department, the U.S. Attorney offices and law enforcement as weapons to go after his perceived enemies,” Schumer said in a statement last week. “Such blatant and depraved political motivations are deeply corrosive to the rule of law and leaves me deeply skeptical of the Donald Trump’s intentions for these important positions. For that reason, I will not return the blue slip for the U.S. Attorney nominees for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.”
By naming Clayton as his interim choice, Trump is likely able to get his way without putting Clayton through a confirmation process.
After 120 days, judges in the Southern District of New York can vote to appoint Clayton to the job until there’s a confirmed nominee, and Trump could simply name no one else.
ABC News’ Allison Pecorin contributed to this report.
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