Matthew Whitaker

Matthew George Whitaker (born October 29, 1969) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the Acting United States Attorney General from November 7, 2018, to February 14, 2019. He was appointed to that position by President Donald Trump after Jeff Sessions resigned at Trump's request. Whitaker had previously served as Chief of Staff to Sessions from September 2017 to November 2018.On December 7, 2018, Trump announced his nomination of William Barr for Attorney General, leaving Whitaker's future at the Department of Justice in doubt. On February 15, 2019, after Barr was sworn in on the previous day, Whitaker became a senior counselor in the Office of the Associate Attorney General, serving in that position until his resignation on March 2, 2019.In 2002, Whitaker was the candidate of the Republican Party for Treasurer of Iowa. From 2004 to 2009, he served as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa. Whitaker ran in the 2014 Iowa Republican primary for the United States Senate. He later wrote opinion pieces and appeared on talk-radio shows and cable news as the director of the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT), a conservative advocacy group. He was also involved with World Patent Marketing, which was fined $26 million and shut down by the Federal Trade Commission in 2017 for deceiving consumers.The legality of Whitaker's appointment as Acting U.S. Attorney General was challenged in multiple lawsuits. Legal scholars, commentators, and politicians have questioned the legality and constitutionality of his appointment, arguing that his selection circumvented Senate confirmation. Some also called for Whitaker to recuse himself from overseeing the Special Counsel investigation (2017–2019) because of potential conflicts of interest. In January 2019, the Supreme Court of the United States denied a petition challenging the appointment.