May 14 (Bloomberg) -- Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty, a prominent figure in the political furor over the firing of eight U.S. prosecutors, will resign.

As the No. 2 Justice Department official, McNulty was responsible for overseeing the 93 U.S. attorneys. Congressional Democrats are investigating whether the prosecutors were fired for improper political motives.

In a letter today to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, McNulty said he will leave ``on a date to be determined in late summer.'' He added that, ``financial realities of college-age children and two decades of public service lead me to a long overdue transition in my career.''

McNulty didn't mention the firings in his statement, though he had come under fire following his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in February. He told the panel that the prosecutors were fired for unspecified performance problems, except for one who was dismissed to give his job to a former aide to White House political adviser Karl Rove.

His testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee angered Gonzales, according to a department e-mail released in connection with the probe.

Gonzales, in a statement today, said McNulty ``is an outstanding public servant and a fine attorney who has been valued here at the department.''

`Ironic'

New York Senator Charles Schumer, a Democrat who is leading the Senate investigation of the firings, said in a statement, ``It seems ironic that Paul McNulty who at least tried to level with the committee goes while Gonzales who stonewalled the committee is still in charge.''

McNulty, 49, is the highest-ranking Justice Department official to quit amid the controversy over the firings. Kyle Sampson, Gonzales's chief of staff who kept the list of prosecutors to be fired, quit in March. Another aide, Monica Goodling, resigned in April.

Gonzales is still fighting to keep his job. Many Democrats and some Republicans have called for him to step down, while President George W. Bush has repeatedly expressed his support.

In his testimony to the Senate Judiciary panel, McNulty said the White House had only limited involvement in the dismissals. Later, the Justice Department released internal e-mails showing that top White House staff members initiated the firings and were regularly consulted about which prosecutors to oust.

Honest Mistake

Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions, a Republican, said he believes McNulty's testimony about the White House involvement in the firings was an honest mistake because Gonzales's aide ``hadn't told him about'' it.

``I don't see anything that impugns his integrity in the process,'' Sessions said.

In a private interview with congressional investigators on April 27, McNulty said he was surprised to learn about plans for the prosecutor firings in late October and didn't know why they were targeted for removal, Senate aides said. McNulty said he never asked Gonzales or Sampson why the U.S. attorneys were fired, said an aide who spoke on condition of anonymity.

McNulty was the U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia before becoming the acting deputy in November 2005. He was confirmed by the Senate in March 2006.

While at the Justice Department, he led the corporate fraud task force and issued new guidance to prosecutors that eased the policy for indicting corporations.

To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Schmidt in Washington at rschmidt5@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: May 14, 2007 18:36 EDT