President Donald Trump has announced the appointment of James M. McDonald as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, one of the most influential positions in the Justice Department. McDonald, a former federal prosecutor in the office he has been picked to run, served as a financial regulator during Trump’s first term and worked in the White House counsel’s office in President George W. Bush’s administration.

Background and Experience

McDonald is a partner at the law firm of Sullivan & Cromwell and has been part of the legal team handling Trump’s pending appeal of felony convictions in New York related to hush money payments to adult film actor Stormy Daniels as the Republican ran for president in 2016. He has also served as director of enforcement at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission during Trump’s first term in office and was deputy associate counsel in the White House under Bush.

McDonald’s appointment comes after Trump put forward Jay Clayton, the current U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, as his pick for the director of national intelligence. The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan welcomed Trump’s choice, with spokesperson Nicholas Biase stating that Mr. McDonald is widely respected.

Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.