Bill Essayli was approaching a 120-day limit as an interim U.S. attorney when he hinted to conservative commentator Glenn Beck that he might not be leaving just yet.

“We’ve got some tricks up our sleeves,” the former Republican state lawmaker said in a July podcast .

Essayli would later become one of several interim U.S. attorneys to go through a Justice Department personnel maneuver that critics say unlawfully lengthens the tenure of administration allies and sidesteps the Senate confirmation process for U.S. attorneys.

Although the details vary, Trump administration-appointed U.S. attorneys in New Jersey, Nevada, California, Virginia and New Mexico have faced motions challenging the lawfulness of their appointments. District courts in at least two of those challenges already have ru

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