Trump says he fired U.S. attorney overseeing Letitia James probe; Siebert resignation follows presidential remarks

President Donald Trump on Saturday said he fired Erik Siebert, the U.S. attorney nominee for the Eastern District of Virginia, who would have led the federal probe into mortgage fraud allegations against New York Attorney General Letitia James. In a post on Truth Social, Trump asserted that Siebert did not resign but was dismissed in the aftermath of White House opposition to the nomination. The comments come as Siebert had not yet been confirmed by the Senate and as the James investigation lingered without criminal charges.

Siebert had not advanced to confirmation by the Senate. Trump said he changed his mind after learning that two Democratic Virginia senators, Tim Kaine and Mark Warner, had expressed support for Siebert, and he suggested the nomination would have been easier if the candidate had run as a Democrat. The nomination had stalled for months in Congress, and Trump indicated that political considerations shaped his view of the nominee. <br />

Shortly after Trump spoke in the Oval Office, Siebert emailed his team to say he had submitted his resignation as Interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. In the note to staff, he praised the department’s line prosecutors and staff and thanked them for their service to justice. The resignation came as the administration signaled its preference for a different nominee to oversee the EDVA office pending Senate action.

The broader context involves the James mortgage fraud probe. In April, William Pulte, then director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, asked the FBI to open an investigation into James over allegations that she falsified records to secure favorable loans on a Virginia home purchased in 2023 and a Brooklyn brownstone she has owned since 2001. James has dismissed the allegations as baseless and described them as part of a political effort against her after she filed civil fraud charges against Trump and his company. Officials familiar with the matter said Siebert was weighing charges related to the James case and was slated to meet with Justice Department Special Attorney Ed Martin to discuss the status of the probe.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The episode has stoked concerns about potential political influence in federal prosecutions during an election year, a topic that has drawn attention from lawmakers and judicial watchdogs. Observers noted that Kaine and Warner had expressed support for Siebert, a factor in the White House’s decision-making process as it considers a replacement candidate. While no charges have been filed in the James matter, the investigation remains active and unsettled as federal authorities continue to assess the evidence.

The episode underscores the ongoing tension between political considerations and the seemingly independent operations of federal prosecutorial offices, a dynamic that often surfaces in high-profile investigations tied to prominent political figures. As the administration weighs another nominee for the EDVA post, senators will assess whether to advance a candidate with similar qualifications or pursue a different path to ensure the office can operate with prosecutorial independence while addressing ongoing inquiries into political figures and public corruption.