Trump fires new Seattle prosecutor less than an hour after appointment

Administration Trump fires new Seattle prosecutor less than an hour after appointment Comments: by Max Rego - 07/16/26 8:42 AM ET Comments: Link copied by Max Rego - 07/16/26 8:42 AM ET Comments: Link copied

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President Trump on Wednesday fired U.S. Attorney Roger Rogoff, hours after he was appointed as the top federal prosecutor in the Western District of Washington state.

Rogoff was sworn in shortly before 8 a.m. PCT in downtown Seattle, but he told The Associated Press that he received an email from the Trump administration informing him of his termination while waiting in the lobby of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Trump in October named Charles Neil Floyd, a former immigration judge, as the interim U.S. attorney for the district. The president then altered Floyd’s title to first assistant U.S. attorney when his 120-day tenure in the role ended in February.

After a U.S. appeals court panel expressed doubt the move by Trump was legal, a group of 17 active and former federal judges in the district unanimously appointed Rogoff — a former King County Superior Court judge who previously served as the assistant U.S. attorney in the district.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on Wednesday defended the president’s move to fire Rogoff, saying the group of judges in the Evergreen State “abandoned the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration.”

But Democratic Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.) scolded the Justice Department for Rogoff’s dismissal, calling the former superior court judge “eminently qualified” and labeling Floyd as an “out-of-touch extremist.”

The six-term senator added in statement, “This administration doesn’t want to deal with advice and consent — they just want to install cronies to carry out a corrupt political agenda. The people of Washington state deserve someone in this role who will enforce the law fairly and responsibly — not some Trump administration sock puppet.”

Rogoff, meanwhile, told the AP on Wednesday that he is “really proud” of his career despite the setback. The experienced judge and prosecutor also noted he is consulting with other lawyers about taking legal action against the administration.

“The fact that the judges of this district — most of whom I’ve spent my career appearing in front of, or trying cases against, or working with — believed that I was the right person to do this work is just really humbling and amazing,” he added.

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