Why not fired?
I’m just guessing here, but they’ve got to follow procedures in the federal employment system. Some things require more proof or a sequence of actions than others. For instance, demotion can maybe be done by a boss, but firing requires demotion, putting a person into a different job, proof they can’t do it, etc. Of course they can fire someone for committing a crime but does what he did rise to that level in legal terms? The last thing I want to see is these partisan scumbags getting millions of dollars in settlements or lawsuits because their “rights” were violated.
Gotta do it right. Just do it!