Manhattan DA’s office warns House Republicans over Trump indictment

WASHINGTON – Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office scolded House Republicans Friday for demanding last week that prosecutors reveal evidence in the grand jury case against former President Donald Trump ahead of his Thursday indictment.

“Your examination of the facts of a single criminal investigation, for the supposed purpose of determining whether any charges against Mr. Trump are warranted, is an improper and dangerous usurpation of the executive and judicial functions,” wrote Bragg’s general counsel Leslie Dubeck.

As rumors of the impending indictment swirled last week, the chairmen of the House Oversight and Judiciary committees demanded Bragg hand over documents and testify about “what plainly appears to be a politically motivated” prosecution of the 76-year-old Trump.

“Your actions will erode confidence in the evenhanded application of justice and unalterably interfere in the course of the 2024 presidential election,” Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) wrote in the March 20 letter, which was also signed by House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil (R-Wis.)

In denying the lawmakers’ accusations that Bragg was pursuing the case against Trump for political reasons, Dubeck charged Friday that the House Republican inquiry was in fact politically motivated.

“Based on your reportedly close collaboration with Mr. Trump in attacking this office and the grand jury process, it appears you are acting more like criminal defense counsel trying to gather evidence for a client than a legislative body seeking to achieve a legitimate legislative objective,” she said.

Dubeck sent the letter the day after a grand jury indicted Trump on 34 charges related to his alleged use of campaign funds to reimburse a $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about their purported sexual affair ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

After the lawmakers accused Bragg last week of “an unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority,” Dubeck on Friday accused them of “an unprecedented and illegitimate incursion on New York’s sovereign interests.”

“The charges filed yesterday were brought by citizens of New York, doing their civic duty as members of a grand jury, who found probable cause to accuse Mr. Trump of having committed crimes in New York,” she said.

Further, the general counsel said, the lawmakers do not have the authority to probe the investigation, adding that “secrecy is critical to protecting the privacy of the target of any criminal investigation as well as the integrity of the independent grand jury’s proceedings.”

“Your recent letter states that the purpose of your inquiry is to conduct ‘an examination of the facts’ relating to the investigation of Mr. Trump,” she said. “But Congress has no warrant for interfering with individual criminal investigations – much less investigations conducted by a separate sovereign.”

Dubeck urged the lawmakers to withdraw their request for information on the case “and let the criminal justice process proceed without unlawful political interference,” but said the office would be willing to meet with them to discuss “how we can accommodate your request without violating our obligations as prosecutors.”

“We respectfully request that you provide us with a list of questions you wish to ask the District Attorney Bragg and to describe the type of documents you think we could produce that would be relevant to your inquiry without violating New York grand jury secrecy rules or interfering with the criminal case now before a court,” she said.

The congressmen gave no indication that they would pull back. Instead, Comer doubled down on accusations that the case and subsequent indictment were politically motivated.

“The Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has weaponized his office to launch a blatantly political indictment,” the Kentuckian tweeted Friday. “This case rests on a far-fetched legal theory untested anywhere in the U.S. The American people deserve better than this cheap, political stunt.”