down from his position. He said that Trump intended to nominate Jay Clayton, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to take Berman's place as the Manhattan U.S. attorney, and that Trump, on his recommendation, had appointed Craig Carpenito, the U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey, to serve as the acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, effective July 3, 2020, while the Senate takes up Clayton's nomination. Shortly after Barr's announcement, Berman denied having resigned and said that he had "no intention of resigning," saying that he was appointed by a court, not the president, and that he would remain in office until the Senate confirmed a replacement. He added that he learned about his supposed intention to step down from press reports. He vowed to ensure that the office’s "important cases continue unimpeded." Because Berman was appointed by the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York under 28 U.S.C. Section 546(d), it was unclear whether either the Attorney General or the President could remove Berman as US Attorney without a Senate-confirmed successor in place. It was also unclear whether Carpenito is legally eligible to replace Berman on an acting basis. The next day, June 20, Barr claimed that Trump had fired Berman, writing in a letter to Berman, "Because you have declared that you have no intention of resigning, I have asked the President to remove you as of today, and he has done so." Barr wrote in his letter, "Unfortunately, with your statement of last night, you have chosen public spectacle over public service". Barr added "By operation of law, the Deputy United States Attorney, Audrey Strauss, will become the Acting United States Attorney." When asked by reporters, Trump said, "That's his [Barr's] department, not mine. ... I'm not involved." Later that day Berman agreed to step down because, he said, Barr had respected "the normal operation of law" by appointing his deputy as interim U.S. attorney. Barr also wrote to Berman, "Your statement also wrongly implies that your continued tenure in the office is necessary to ensure that cases now pending in the Southern District of New York are handled appropriately. This is obviously false." Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York stated that the firing "reeks of potential corruption of the legal process." Schumer said from the Senate floor, "But for Mr. Berman’s principled