Executive Branch

Manhattan DA’s Office Refutes House GOP Oversight Claims Regarding Trump Indictment

Katherine Pompilio
Friday, March 31, 2023, 12:30 PM

In the letter, Dubeck urges Jordan, Comer, and Steil to refrain from “unlawful political interference.”

 

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On March 31, Manhattan District Attorney (DA) Alvin Bragg’s General Counsel Leslie Dubeck issued a response to a second letter from three House Republicansalleging that the New York grand jury’s investigationinto former President Trump is politically motivated and requires Congressional oversight. 

In the letter to Reps. Jim Jordan (R.-Ohio), James Comer (R.-Ky.), and Bryan Steil (R.-Wis.), Dubeck asserts that Congress lacks jurisdiction to oversee a state criminal prosecution, and describes the Republicans’ efforts as “an improper and dangerous usurpation of the executive and judicial functions.” Further, the DA’s office argues that the three congressmen did not identity any legislative purpose for oversight of its investigation, and that their proposal to “insulate current and former president’s” from current and future state criminal investigations is “a baseless pretext to interfere with [the DA office’s] work” and is “unnecessary and unjustified.”

The letter concludes by urging Jordan, Comer, and Steil to “refrain from inflammatory accusation, withdraw [their] demand for information, and let the criminal justice process proceed without unlawful political interference.”

You can read the letter hereor below:


Katherine Pompilio is an associate editor of Lawfare. She holds a B.A. with honors in political science from Skidmore College.

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