The Justice Department announced the firings Friday afternoon, and many prosecutors had not been formally notified or even told before they were fired, according to a law enforcement source. Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente was in the beginning stages of calling each US attorney individually to tell them they had to resign when the DOJ issued a statement. A law enforcement source charged that "this could not have been handled any worse" because there was little warning. A Justice Department spokeswoman explained that forced resignations are a matter of course when turning the agency over to a new administration. The attorney general has now asked the remaining 46 presidentially appointed US attorneys to tender their resignations in order to ensure a uniform transition," Justice Department spokesperson Sarah Isgur Flores said.

Source: CNN March 10, 2017 20:58 UTC