Maryland files legal challenge to Acting U.S. Attorney General appointment

Thomson Reuters

By Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Maryland became the first state on Tuesday to ask a federal judge to decide whether or not Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker was legally appointed by President Donald Trump, according to a court filing.

In the filing, the state asked Judge Ellen Hollander in the U.S. District Court of Maryland to bar Whitaker from appearing in an official capacity as acting attorney general in litigation over a dispute related to the Affordable Care Act and to substitute Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in Whitaker's place.

"It is crucial that the appropriate person appear before this Court as the Acting Attorney General to present the

government’s position in response to the Complaint," the filing said.

(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; editing by Grant McCool)

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