Topline
The House Judiciary Committee is headed to Manhattan next week for a field hearing, hosted by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), to discuss the policies of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the latest in an ongoing feud between the prosecutor charging former President Donald Trump for his connections to hush money payments and the GOP congressmen defending the 45th president against those charges.
Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, left, speaks during a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Capitol … [+]
Key Facts
The House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to hear from “victims” of Bragg’s policies during a hearing at a federal building blocks from Bragg’s offices, the committee announced Monday.
The field hearing, scheduled for April 17, will examine “New York’s rampant crime” with “victims” of Bragg’s “failure to prosecute” scheduled to appear as witnesses, the committee said.
Jordan described Bragg as a “radical pro-crime” official whose policies have led to “an increase in violent crime in New York City,” in a tweet confirming the news Monday.
News Peg
Last week, Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree for hush-money payments he purportedly made to cover-up alleged affairs with three separate women, in the first-ever criminal prosecution of a former U.S. president.
Key Background
For weeks Bragg’s office and Jordan, along with his colleagues Reps. James Comer (R-Ky.) and Bryan Steil (R-Wis.), have sparred over the looming indictment of the former president. In March the GOP chairman demanded Bragg testify over the criminal probe into Trump, calling it an “unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority” and saying the investigation into the former president was politically motivated. Bragg responded, calling the request an “unprecedented inquiry” into a local prosecution and questioned its legislative purpose. In the days since the former president was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury and he appeared for his arraignment, Republicans have ramped up their attacks on Bragg, his office and the criminal investigation into Trump. Last week, in their latest effort to defend the former president, House Republicans subpoenaed Mark Pomerantz, a former Manhattan prosecutor who resigned from Bragg’s office last year and has expressed some grievances about that experience in his recently released book.
Further Reading
Bragg Decries ‘Harassment And Intimidation’ As GOP Ramps Up Investigation Into Trump Case (Forbes)
Bragg Calls GOP Attacks Of Trump Indictment ‘Baseless And Inflammatory’ In New Letter (Forbes)
Manhattan D.A. Calls House GOP’s Investigation Of Trump Criminal Probe ‘Unlawful’ (Forbes)
House GOP Demands Manhattan DA Testify Over Trump Criminal Probe: ‘Unprecedented Abuse Of Prosecutorial Authority’ (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/04/10/gop-rep-jim-jordan-will-hold-judiciary-hearing-in-nyc-over-manhattan-district-attorneys-alleged-victims/