Preet Bharara Is Fired After Refusing to Step Down as U. S. Attorney -<br />By MAGGIE HABERMAN and BENJAMIN WEISERMARCH 11, 2017<br />Preet Bharara, the Manhattan federal prosecutor who was asked by President Trump to remain in his post<br />shortly after the election, was fired on Saturday after he refused an order to submit his resignation.<br />Two White House officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the promise to keep Mr. Bharara on was a product of a chaotic transition process<br />and Mr. Trump’s desire at the time to try to work with Senator Chuck Schumer, with whom Mr. Bharara is close.<br />In November, Mr. Bharara met at Trump Tower with the president-elect and several of his advisers, including Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and his chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon, according to two people briefed on<br />that discussion who requested anonymity to describe a private meeting with Mr. Trump.<br />The Southern District of New York, which Mr. Bharara has overseen since 2009, encompasses Manhattan, Mr. Trump’s home<br />before he was elected president, as well as the Bronx, Westchester, and other counties north of New York City.<br />But Mr. Bharara, who was called to Trump Tower for a meeting with the incoming president in late November, declined to do so.
