As noted by Dan yesterday, a majority of federal judges in the Eastern District of Wisconsin have declined to allow former state Attorney General Brad Schimel to remain as U.S. attorney beyond the expiration of his 120-day term on March 17.
However, Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson continues to advocate for Brad Schimel and suggests that the Trump administration could retain Schimel as U.S. attorney.
“It is bizarre that the Eastern District Court writes that they view Brad Schimel as performing well as an interim U.S. attorney but then declines to appoint him for the duration of the vacancy – especially when they are fully aware that Senate Democrats are obstructing the nomination and confirmation of U.S. attorneys throughout the country,” Johnson stated.
Johnson expressed deep disappointment and encouraged decisive action from the Justice Department. “I am obviously disappointed in their decision. I encourage Attorney General Pam Bondi to utilize available authorities to keep Brad in charge of the U.S. attorney’s office,” he said.
Looking ahead, Johnson pledged bipartisan efforts to revive Wisconsin’s stalled nomination process. “I will also work with Sen. Baldwin to reconvene the Wisconsin Federal Nominating Commission. Last year, the commission failed to produce recommendations for Wisconsin’s U.S. attorney offices because some commissioners refused to evaluate certain applicants based solely on their qualifications,” Johnson noted.
He concluded with a call for impartiality: “I urge the commissioners not to inject partisan politics into their important work.”
