House Republican Leaders — including Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY), and Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil (R-WI) — dispatched a letter to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Monday demanding information related to the woke DA's case against former President Donald Trump.
The information Republican lawmakers demanded includes "communications, documents, and testimony relating to Bragg's unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority and the potential indictment of former President Donald Trump," according to the Representatives.
"You are reportedly about to engage in an unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority: the indictment of a former President of the United States and current declared candidate for that office," the House Republicans said in their letter to District Attorney Bragg. "This indictment comes after years of your office searching for a basis—any basis—on which to bring charges, ultimately settling on a novel legal theory untested anywhere in the country and one that federal authorities declined to pursue," they added.
.@Jim_Jordan , @RepJamesComer and @RepBryanSteil have requested the following documents from Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg following Trump's Truth Social post over the weekend, giving Bragg three days to respond.https://t.co/CZbTtgBR5u pic.twitter.com/LiVKljyaOB
— bryan metzger (@metzgov) March 20, 2023
"If these reports are accurate, your actions will erode confidence in the evenhanded application of justice and unalterably interfere in the course of the 2024 presidential election," the lawmakers continued. "In light of the serious consequences of your actions, we expect that you will testify about what plainly appears to be a politically motivated prosecutorial decision."
The chairmen of the powerful House committees criticized Bragg for his "novel and untested legal theory" on which he's basing his case against Trump and noted Bragg's "star witness for this prosecution has a serious credibility problem–a problem that you have reportedly recognized."
"Your decision to pursue such a politically motivated prosecution—while adopting progressive criminal justice policies that allow career 'criminals [to] run the streets' of Manhattan—requires congressional scrutiny about how public safety funds appropriated by Congress are implemented by local law-enforcement agencies," the lawmakers continued.
Further explaining the need for congressional oversight, the House Republicans note Bragg's "apparent decision to pursue criminal charges where federal authorities declined to do so requires oversight to inform potential legislative reforms about the delineation of prosecutorial authority between federal and local officials."
Specifically, lawmakers are demanding that Bragg and his office turn over:
1. All documents and communications between or among the New York County District Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Justice, its component entities, or other federal law enforcement agencies referring or relating to your office’s investigation of President Donald Trump;
2. All documents and communications sent or received by former employees Carey Dunne and Mark Pomerantz referring or relating to President Donald Trump; and
3. All documents and communications referring or relating to the New York County District Attorney Office’s receipt and use of federal funds.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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