Trump picks James McDonald for top federal prosecutor post in Manhattan
Why it matters: McDonald would lead the Southern District of New York, a powerful office handling terrorism, securities fraud and public corruption cases.
President Donald Trump moved to install James M. McDonald as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, placing one of his personal lawyers in charge of the federal prosecutor’s office in Manhattan. McDonald is a former prosecutor in that office, a partner at Sullivan & Cromwell, and previously served as enforcement director at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission during Trump’s first term. He is also part of Trump’s legal team in the appeal of New York felony convictions tied to hush money payments to Stormy Daniels. McDonald would replace Jay Clayton, who Trump selected this week for director of national intelligence.