Well, that was fast.

Federal judges in Seattle swore Roger Rogoff in as the new U.S. attorney for Western Washington Wednesday morning.

Just 54 minutes later, President Trump fired him.

The judges had chosen Rogoff after the Trump administration’s interim pick reached the end of his temporary term and Washington’s senior Democratic senator opposed his path to Senate confirmation.

Rogoff arrived expecting to take control of an office with roughly 85 attorneys and 70 support staff. Before the morning was over, he had a termination letter and was preparing for a possible court fight.

Seattle journalist Brandi Kruse captured the drama as it unfolded:

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The clock on this extraordinary appointment began at approximately 7:40 a.m. Pacific.

Chief U.S. District Judge David Estudillo swore Rogoff in after the active judges of the Western District of Washington unanimously selected him.

At approximately 8:34 a.m., Rogoff received written notice from the White House Presidential Personnel Office that President Trump had directed his removal.

Fifty-four minutes. That may be one of the shortest tenures any U.S. attorney has ever served.

The signed order from the Western District of Washington shows that the judges acted under Section 546(d) of Title 28. That law allows a district court to appoint a U.S. attorney after the attorney general’s 120-day interim appointment expires.

The order traces the vacancy back to June 2023, when Biden-appointed U.S. Attorney Nicholas Brown resigned. Tessa Gorman eventually received a court appointment, served into President Trump’s second term and was dismissed in February 2025.

The judges announced in January that they intended to fill the vacancy again and appointed a merit panel in March. Their order says President Trump had not submitted a permanent nominee and declares that Rogoff could serve until a presidential appointee won Senate confirmation.

Rogoff came to the position with deep local ties. He previously worked as a King County prosecutor, an assistant U.S. attorney, a King County Superior Court judge, a Microsoft lawyer and the director of Washington’s Office of Independent Investigations.

That state résumé carries a clear Democratic connection.

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Former Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee appointed Rogoff to the Superior Court and later selected him to run the state office that investigates police uses of deadly force.

Seven active judges in the Western District were appointed by Joe Biden, according to same-day legal reporting.

Washington Republican Party Chairman Jim Walsh did not mince words:

The fight began with Charles Neil Floyd, the administration’s preferred leader for the Seattle office.

Floyd was sworn in as interim U.S. attorney on October 6, 2025. His 120-day appointment later expired, and he moved into the role of first assistant while continuing to lead the office.

Democratic Sen. Patty Murray had said she would block Floyd if President Trump formally nominated him. The White House had yet to send a permanent nominee to the Senate when the judges installed Rogoff.

That opened the door for the court’s temporary appointment, and the judges walked straight through it.

The White House response was immediate.

Bloomberg Law obtained the termination language and reported that the White House relied on Section 541(c) of Title 28 and Article II of the Constitution. Section 541(c) says U.S. attorneys are subject to removal by the President.

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That creates a remarkable collision between two provisions of federal law. The court says Section 546(d) gave it authority to fill the vacancy, while the White House says Section 541(c) gave President Trump authority to fire the person the judges selected.

Rogoff has retained HKM Employment Attorneys and says he is weighing every legal option. He argues the President may choose a U.S. attorney through nomination and Senate confirmation, and he calls his rapid removal unconstitutional and unlawful.

No lawsuit had been filed as of Wednesday afternoon. A case from Rogoff could become the first direct legal test of whether President Trump’s express removal power reaches a U.S. attorney appointed by federal judges.

Other federal courts have made similar appointments during clashes with the administration in Virginia, New York and New Jersey.

The White House quickly removed several of those judicial selections, and the ousted appointees did not pursue the kind of lawsuit Rogoff is now considering.

Bloomberg Law reporter Ben Penn shared Rogoff’s response:

For now, the administration’s man remains at the helm.

The U.S. Department of Justice currently lists Floyd as first assistant U.S. attorney and describes him as Western Washington’s chief federal law enforcement officer. He leads the office’s criminal and civil divisions despite the end of his earlier interim term.

Floyd’s background includes service as a federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C., an ICE attorney, an immigration judge and special counsel for immigration enforcement in the FBI general counsel’s office. He also served in the Army JAG Corps, deployed to Iraq and retired as a lieutenant colonel.

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The administration plainly trusts Floyd to carry out its law-enforcement priorities in the Pacific Northwest. Senate Democrats can delay a permanent confirmation, yet Wednesday’s 54-minute firing shows the White House will fiercely resist any attempt by Biden-appointed judges to choose the office’s leader instead.

Rogoff may now ask a court to put him back in the job. If he does, the dispute could force judges to decide how their temporary appointment power fits with the President’s statutory and constitutional removal authority.

President Trump did not wait for that argument to begin.

He saw the judges’ pick walk into his Justice Department, and 54 minutes later he showed him the door.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport. View the original article here.

 

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