Acting Attorney General Sally Yates Fired By Donald Trump. What It Means For America.

Jan 30

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sally-yates

Acting Attorney General Sally Yates

There’s so much in the news regarding President Trump’s Executive Order banning Muslims from 7 countries from entering the United States, that following it is almost like putting a jig saw puzzle together.  There are many, many pieces that make the whole.

On Saturday, a U.S. District Court judge placed a temporary injunction on Trump’s Executive Order.  A hearing is scheduled for next month.  That means that the federal judge is giving the United States (Trump) time to prepare and file a defense as to why the Executive Order is not in violation of the constitution.  It has now been reported that four federal judges have temporarily enjoined the Executive Order.

Earlier this evening, cable news reported that the acting Attorney General, Sally Yates, was not going to defend Trump’s Executive Order.  According to the New York Times;

“At present, I am not convinced that the defense of the executive order is consistent with these responsibilities, nor am I convinced that the executive order is lawful,” Ms. Yates wrote in a letter to Justice Department lawyers.

Raw and other sources now report that President Donald Trump has “relieved” acting Attorney General Sally Yates of her duties as reported by White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer.

Spicer made the announcement via Twitter, writing: “@POTUS has named Dana Boente, US Attorney for the Eastern District of VA as Acting Attorney General. Sally Yates has been relieved.”

The Danger In Trump’s Firing of Yates

When a person interviewed on cable news was asked of the possibility that Trump might fire Yates, he replied that of course, Trump has authority to that, but Yates is the only person remaining with the Attorney General’s office who was confirmed by Congress.

He went on to explain that the law requires that federal warrants be signed by a person who has been confirmed by Congress.  Trump’s appointee, Jeff Sessions, has not yet been confirmed by Congress.  This means that now, the Office of the Attorney General – U.S. Department of Justice, has absolutely no one in authority to sign federal warrants.

We had better hope that no one commits a federal crime.

It’s just as dangerous as now having no authoritative staff in the State Department.

 

Posted on 01/30/2017, in civil rights, Department of Justice, politics and tagged , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 20 Comments.

  1. Xena | 01/30/2017 at 9:20 pm

    And it looks like Trump just fired someone else too.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
  2. Madelyn Griffith-Haynie, MCC, SCAC | 01/30/2017 at 10:39 pm

    Impulse, anger and retribution – reason has left the White House. O.M.G.
    xx,
    mgh

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
  3. Xena | 01/31/2017 at 1:47 am

    Current Trump nominee Sen. Jeff Sessions questioned Sally Yates at her confirmation hearing. He asked her about saying “no” to the President.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply
  4. Jay S Parks | 01/31/2017 at 2:46 am

    Only the people who did not vote for him will notice his mounting insanity. Those so deluded as to elect him will praise his every idiocy.

    Liked by 7 people

    Reply
    • Xena | 01/31/2017 at 2:08 pm

      Hi Jay. Some who voted for him are now second-guessing their vote. They sincerely believed that if he was elected that he would transform into being “presidential”. So, for them, it’s not so much about his policies but his attitude and presentation.

      Liked by 4 people

      Reply
      • roach59 | 02/03/2017 at 6:29 pm

        Xena,
        I understand what you are saying but… some people will “cut off their nose to spite their face.” I don’t think a lot of these people believed in him per say but they definitely did not want Hillary, a Democrat, to win the White House. So sad for America!!!

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        • Xena | 02/04/2017 at 12:36 am

          Roach,
          I didn’t want Hillary, but I sure didn’t want Trump either. I took a look a Jill Stein but decided that I didn’t want to vote for someone who started all of her sentences with “so”. Sadly, given the choices, I voted for Hillary, although my vote meant very little because Illinois carries the Democrat candidate anyway. Those who voted for Trump might soon regret doing so. That’s because it’s not just Trump, but those who he has working in his administration.

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  5. Dreamer9177 | 01/31/2017 at 6:02 am

    Usse of the word “betrayed” in the statement indicates that the Nazi has an immature and insecure mind.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
    • Xena | 01/31/2017 at 2:12 pm

      Dreamer, it’s really scary especially since we know certain words are projections of propaganda. Yates swore to uphold the constitution and the law. She did not swear to uphold orders coming from anyone, especially when those orders violate the constitution and the law.

      Trump’s use of that word to justify firing Yates means that he took her decision personally. Most people know that they have attorneys to give them good counsel. But, with Trump it’s his way or the highway, in spite of Yates’ education and experience.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply
  6. Gronda Morin | 01/31/2017 at 2:43 pm

    Dear Xena,

    We now know for sure that Ms. Yates was capable of saying no to our president; whereas, Senator Sessions and Dana Boente, are incapable of standing up to our president, even when he is wrong.

    Hugs, Gronda

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
    • Xena | 01/31/2017 at 3:19 pm

      Gronda,
      Indeed. Any attorney, even those in private practice, are required by the rules of ethics to counsel clients or potential clients on the law and merits of cases. The U.S. Code requires Attorney Generals to advise the President at the President’s request, and heads of Departments and Agencies. Here however, Trump either did not request advice from Yates, or did and ignored it anyway.

      The petition filed by the ACLU in New York was exact in describing the laws and constitutional rights that Trump’s Executive Order violates. Among them is a section of the Immigration Act. Yates understood that. It would take an act of Congress to repeal or amend the Immigration Act — not an Executive Order.

      But, Trump is so accustomed of turning litigation into peeing matches that he would have taxpayers foot the bill to litigate his Executive Order. Here is something I found on the Federal Register;

      “The President of the United States manages the operations of the Executive branch of Government through Executive orders.”

      Pretty simple, uh?

      For curiosity and comparison sake, I scrolled through the Executive Orders of George W. Bush. They were all administrative in content. They gave federal departments the right to do things, such as enter contracts for construction, establish or continue special advisory commissions, etc. So, even Dubya got it right. Trump doesn’t understand, doesn’t want to understand, and fires those who do understand.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  7. Xena | 01/31/2017 at 3:39 pm

    This reminds me of the song from the movie “Robin Hood, Men in Tights” only instead of singing “men, men, men, men” the words are replaced with “fight, fight, fight, fight.”

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  8. Two sides to a story | 01/31/2017 at 5:13 pm

    Xena, could you explain the legal differences between Trump’s ban and Obama’s ban? Conservatives claim they’re both the same, therefore constitutional.

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  9. JoAnn Chateau | 01/31/2017 at 6:05 pm

    Apparently, anyone who stands for principle and who stands up to Trump will be fired. However, this will not obscure Sally Yates. Her career and influence are likely to blossom. We are so lucky to have her.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  10. TheChattyIntrovert | 01/31/2017 at 10:28 pm

    I find these to be frightening times. He wants a “yes-men” comprised cabinet and government, and “you’re fired” to those who won’t support him. The whiny narcissist has to have his way, and a kiss-butt media at the ready (I can’t listen to FOX without cringing and wanting to punch the t.v.).
    Does he want to be king or something? I’ve never been much of a prayer, but each day I’m finding more reasons to start.

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