US attorney general says Trump has fired prosecutor who refused to resign

WASHINGTON -- US Attorney General William Barr said on Saturday that President Donald Trump has fired Attorney for the Southern District of New York Geoffrey Berman, who refused to step down over unfinished investigations.

In a letter to Berman, Barr accused of him choosing "public spectacle over public service."

"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.

Trump announced late Friday night his intention to nominate Jay Clayton, chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, to replace Berman.

In a stunning response, Berman, who ran the probe that sent Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen to prison and is reportedly investigating his current personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, said that he has not resigned and that he has "no intention of resigning."