Trump makes move for U.S. attorneys in NY

This originally appeared in The Point. To subscribe, click here.

It’s becoming increasingly likely that President Donald Trump will make appointments soon to two of the nation’s most prestigious U.S. attorney’s offices, those in the Southern and Eastern districts of New York. Multiple sources tell The Point that the administration would like to include these two nominations in the next tranche sent to the Senate for consideration before the end of the year.

CNN and Politico reported Thursday that Trump has met with Edward McNally, one of the two candidates for the Brooklyn post, and with Geoffrey Berman for the Manhattan office. It is extremely rare for a president to meet with candidates as opposed to nominees.

That spurred a flurry of indignation by Democratic Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Dianne Feinstein of California, who said Trump should not be meeting with candidates, especially those who would have jurisdiction over cases that could involve him and his family. Trump Tower is in Manhattan, and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, has many properties in Brooklyn, including his purchase of the Watchtower building that needs financing.

The news of Trump’s meeting with McNally also set off alarms among supporters of Richard Donoghue, the other candidate for the Eastern District. Donoghue, counsel to CA Technologies, is the candidate favored most by the local law enforcement and legal community and alums of the Eastern District, where he was a longtime prosecutor. McNally is a law partner of Trump long-time personal lawyer Mark Kasowitz.