Iowa senators recommend U.S. attorneys

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst announced Tuesday their joint recommendations of lawyers to serve as U.S. attorneys in the Northern and Southern districts of Iowa.

The senators' recommendations to President Donald Trump for the Northern District are Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter E. Deegan Jr., of Cedar Rapids, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Reinert, also of Cedar Rapids. Deegan has been an assistant U.S. attorney in Cedar Rapids since 1999 and Reinert since 1990.

Recommended for the Southern District are Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Krickbaum, previously of Des Moines, Matthew C. McDermott, a lawyer with Belin and McCormick of West Des Moines, and Muscatine County Attorney Alan R. Ostergren of Letts.

'These individuals have the necessary qualifications to effectively serve the public at the helm of the U.S. Attorney offices in Iowa,” Grassley said Tuesday in a statement. In a statement Tuesday, Grassley said the nominees 'have distinguished themselves with their legal education, professional experience and demonstrated leadership, and I'm glad to recommend them.”

Ernst called the five 'proven leaders who are well-qualified.”

'It is my hope that the President will give them the thoughtful consideration they deserve,” Ernst said in a statement.

The senators said that every Iowan expressing interest in being named to a U.S. attorney position was considered and interviewed by an independent panel for these recommendations.

U.S. attorneys are the chief federal law enforcement officer in their jurisdictions and serve as the nation's principal litigators under the direction of the U.S. Attorney General. They are appointed by and serve at the discretion of the President with the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate. Trump will nominate a U.S. attorney for each of the country's 94 federal judicial districts. Those nominations then will be considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee, of which Grassley is chairman.

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