Trump crosses red lines by expelling opponents.
The New Yorker has characterized the firing of U.S. Attorney Eric Seibert as a troubling indication of the consequences of opposing the president’s orders and the lengths to which Trump will go to target his perceived adversaries.
According to the article, Trump stated, “I want him gone,” referring to Seibert, a career prosecutor he had appointed less than five months earlier to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Seibert, who had been acting U.S. Attorney since January and was under consideration for a Senate confirmation, resigned shortly thereafter. However, Trump claimed that Seibert’s resignation was insufficient. He wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social, just after midnight, “He didn’t resign, I fired him!”
Trump asserted that his decision to remove Seibert stemmed from learning about Seibert’s strong support from two Democratic senators from Virginia, whom he described as “terrible and rude.” These senators, Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, along with Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin, had recommended Seibert for the position.
The New Yorker argues that Trump’s unusual justification for blaming Warner and Kaine for a bipartisan effort is misleading. The underlying reason for Trump’s disagreement with Seibert was clear: Seibert had reportedly refused to pursue criminal charges against two individuals whom Trump views as adversaries—New York Attorney General Letitia James, who had sued Trump and his company for fraud, and former FBI Director James Comey, whom Trump dismissed during his first term.