Ninth Circuit Rules Nevada US Attorney Appointment Illegal

 

The Ninth Circuit just handed down a clear rebuke: Sigal Chattah’s run as Nevada’s top federal prosecutor was unlawful. The appeals court affirmed a lower court decision that the Justice Department’s personnel shuffle violated federal law, and that means Chattah can no longer supervise the prosecutions at issue. In plain English: the administration tried a clever end-run and the judges slapped it down.

What the court actually held

The three-judge panel said the Justice Department could not sidestep the statute that limits interim U.S. attorney appointments. The government’s move — put someone in as interim, then relabel her “first assistant” after the vacancy to keep her in charge — was ruled impermissible. The court’s message was simple and sharp: Congress wrote rules for a reason, and the Attorney General can’t rewrite them by sleight of hand.

Why this matters beyond Nevada

This is not a tiny procedural quarrel. The ruling follows similar decisions from other districts that rejected the same tactic. The practical fallout is immediate: judges and the DOJ now must decide who runs the prosecutions Chattah had been overseeing. The administration nominated George Kelesis

 

for the permanent job, and the Senate should do its job and consider that nomination rather than letting personnel games fester. If the Justice Department asks the Supreme Court to take this up, we’ll have an even bigger showdown over the executive’s power to staff offices without Senate oversight.

A conservative take: rule of law beats political tricks

Call it inconvenient for a Republican administration if you like, but the court’s ruling is a win for the rule of law and separation of powers. If you want your preferred U.S. attorney in place, go through the Senate. Don’t invent a workaround and then act surprised when judges enforce the statute. That’s not bold leadership — it’s sloppy governance dressed up as creative personnel management. And no, sarcasm aside, the GOP should not cheer a tactic that undermines the very checks and balances conservatives claim to defend.

What should happen next

The smart path is obvious: the White House should proceed with the nomination process for George Kelesis and ask the Senate to move swiftly. The Justice Department should stop using procedural contortions that invite costly litigation. If the administration decides to appeal to the Supreme Court, it should be ready to defend the principle it claims to embrace — that appointments require Senate accountability. For now, the courts have reined in a messy stunt. Let’s call it what it is and fix it the right way.