Washington DC - President Donald Trump claimed on Saturday he fired a federal prosecutor because he received "unusually strong" support from Democratic senators.

Erik Siebert, US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, had been under pressure to prosecute two of Trump's political adversaries: former FBI director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

According to the New York Times, Siebert told staff of his resignation via an email on Friday. Some officials in the administration had reportedly argued for him to keep his position.

"Today I withdrew the Nomination of Erik Siebert as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, when I was informed that he received the UNUSUALLY STRONG support of the two absolutely terrible, sleazebag Democrat Senators, from the Great State of Virginia," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

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"He didn't quit, I fired him!" he insisted.

Hours earlier in the Oval Office, Trump told reporters: "I want him out."

The federal prosecutor had recently told Justice Department leadership he was declining to prosecute Comey over allegations he lied to Congress, and that there was insufficient evidence to charge James with mortgage fraud, officials familiar with the matter told the Washington Post.

Former FBI chief Comey was fired while leading a probe into whether any members of the Trump campaign had colluded with Moscow to sway the 2016 presidential vote, and has been a vocal critic of the Republican president.

James, as New York's state prosecutor, brought a $464 million case against Trump, alleging he and his company had unlawfully inflated his wealth and manipulated the value of properties to obtain favorable bank loans or insurance terms. A federal court last month overturned the financial penalty imposed on the Republican.

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She, like several other officials, has been accused by a close Trump ally, Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte, of falsifying documents on mortgage applications.

Asked about the case against James on Friday, Trump said: "It looks to me like she's really guilty of something, but I really don't know."