During a floor speech on the topic moments ago, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) said the White House has told her it was replacing from five to 10 Senate-confirmed U.S. attorneys with its own interim appointees.
We know of seven who have left during the last couple of months, many under unusual circumstances. Here is our list:
San Francisco – 1/16/07 – Kevin V. Ryan – unclear
Nevada – 1/15/07 – Daniel Bogden – pushed out
San Diego – 1/12/07 – Carole Lam – pushed out
New Mexico – 12/19/06 – David Igleslias – pushed out
Arizona – 12/19/06 – Paul K. Charlton – unclear
Seattle – 12/15/06 – John McKay – unclear; likely pushed out
Little Rock (Ark.) – 12/15/06 – Bud Cummins – pushed out
Feinstein said she also knew of seven, and listed those above. Curiously, she mentioned an eigthth — from Texas. We haven’t been able to identify that one.
There is an eighth recently-departed U.S. attorney we know of, which some readers have noted: Debra Wong Yang, the former U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles, Calif. Yang was overseeing the investigation into Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA). She announced her resignation in October 2006, but to date there hasn’t been evidence that her departure was forced.
