On Friday, 46 U.S. attorneys, the entire staff, were instructed by the administration of President Donald Trump to "submit their resignations" by the end of the day, without receiving any sort of prior warning, according to a report from MSNBC. One, Preet Bharara, refused to resign. CNBC reports that Mr. Bharara understood that he had entered into "a deal" with the president and the attorney general, shortly following the election, allowing him to remain in his position.

On Saturday, "matters came to a head," and Dana Boente, the acting deputy attorney general, spoke on the phone with the attorney, where the two "danced" about the definition of Bharara's certain departure.

The definition is said to carry little legal significance, but to have tremendous "political significance." In a tweet following the meeting, Preet Bharara stated that he "did not resign," and that he "was fired."

Bharara compares firing to Moreland Commission

Another tweet from the now-former U.S. attorney referred to the Moreland Commission, which was described by Eamon Javers with CNBC as an "independent corruption-fighting entity" that was instituted by New York Governor Andre Cuomo, Heavy reports that Governor Cuomo started the commission in July 2013, with some stating that the governor "intervened" in its operations. It was somewhat mysteriously shuttered after only nine months of existence.

Mr. Javers interpreted Preet Bharara's Moreland Commission tweet to possibly mean that the lawyer saw himself involved in "anti-corruption," just getting ready to get started under the Trump administration, only to have the rug pulled out from under him.

Business Insider has noted Bharara's reputation of "Sheriff of Wall Street." CNBC called the current situation a "far cry" from what Bharara appeared to have perceived in November 2016, when he was summoned to Trump Tower in Manhattan to personally meet with the president.

President reportedly asked Obama-era U.S. attorney to stay on

At the time, speaking to a reporter in the lobby of Trump Tower, the attorney stated that President Trump was aware of the "great work" the Department of Justice had performed, and that the president asked him if he would be "prepared to stay on." Bharara described the meeting as a "good one," and elaborated that he would "absolutely consider" remaining on as a U.S. attorney, Eamon Javers described "questions swirling" around the former U.S. attorney, and listed options for Bharara, including employment, running a "private practice," or even a potential political future. The CNBC host raised the possibility that Preet Bharara might even be interested in running for governor of New York State.
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