'Extremely dangerous': Ex-federal prosecutors call out 'unprecedented' attacks by Jordan, Trump and GOP



Former federal prosecutors are worried about the "extremely dangerous" risks to the United States justice system and principle of prosecutorial independence posed by attacks on Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and other prosecutors by ex-President Donald Trump, U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) and other House GOP allies, The Guardian reports.

"Historically, congressional committees have assiduously honored the bedrock independence necessary for the execution of the criminal prosecutorial function," ex-United States Department of Justice fraud section acting chief Paul Pelletier told the news outlet. "It's particularly rich here where Congressman Jordan, who callously refused to honor a lawful congressional subpoena, now seeks to investigate the motives of a duly elected prosecutor."

The Guardian notes Jordan not only announced a probe on Willis, who indicted Trump and 18 others on racketeering charges for their efforts to overturn the 2020 election, in a letter last month, but he also "launched attacks and an investigation in April of Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney who charged Trump in a 34-count indictment with falsifying business records to hide $130,000 in payments he made in 2016 to an adult film star who alleged she had an affair with Trump."

POLL: Should Trump be allowed to hold office again?

The Guardian adds:

For months, Trump has vilified Willis and Bragg, both of whom are Black, as 'racist' prosecutors. Trump attacked Smith as 'deranged' after his four-count indictment of Trump for his aggressive efforts to block [President Joe] Biden's win included charges of defrauding the US government, and of obstructing an official proceeding, as the Capitol attack by Trump allies occurred as Congress certified Biden's win on January 6.

"Trump's attacks on the federal and local prosecutors who have brought cases against him are unprecedented and extremely dangerous," ex-DOJ inspector general Michael Bromwich told the Guardian. "Because Trump never took seriously his oath to protect and defend the constitution, he cannot fathom that prosecutors and law enforcement personnel do take it seriously and conduct investigations and bring charges based on the evidence and the law rather than to pursue enemies. The GOP historical advocacy of states' rights, which includes the need for local prosecutors to have autonomy from the federal government, has given way to the need to use the Congress to support Trump and attack his law enforcement enemies."

Blasting the "'inaccurate information and misleading statements' in Jordan's letter," as well as his attempt to "advance outrageous partisan misrepresentations," the news outlet notes Willis fired back "in a scathing nine-page rebuttal" to the Ohio lawmaker earlier this month saying, "there is no justification in the constitution for Congress to interfere with a state criminal matter, as you attempt to do."

READ MORE: How MAGA Republicans’ rhetoric could lead to violence

The Guardian's report is available at this link (subscription required).



from Alternet.org https://ift.tt/JltzFfD
via sinceretalk

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PA GOP Senate candidate who says he 'started with nothing' actually grew up in a mansion

Image
David McCormick, who is Pennsylvania's presumptive Republican U.S. Senate nominee, has often suggested he grew up poor in a rural community. But a new report finds that his upbringing was far more affluent than he's suggested. The New York Times reported Friday that McCormick — a former hedge fund executive who lived in Connecticut as recently as 2022 — has been cagey with voters about his childhood. McCormick has tweeted that he was "raised in Bloomsburg working on his family's farm," said on a 2022 podcast that he " started with nothing " and told CBS News that same year that he " didn't have anything " growing up as the son of two schoolteachers. But according to the Times , McCormick's father, Dr. James H. McCormick , was appointed president of what is now Bloomsburg University by Gov. Milton Schapp (D) in 1973. He moved his family into Buckalew Place — the official mansion for presidents of the school that currently spans 5...
Read more

How misinformation could shape the Israel-Hamas war

Image
I wanted to interview Nicholas Grossman regarding the role of misinformation in the war between Israel and Hamas. In particular, I hoped to ask the professor of international relations at the University of Illinois, and senior editor of Arc Digital , about misinformation that arose from American reporting on an explosion at a hospital in Gaza. You know what? I ended up repeating a bit of misinformation! I asked him to lay out the facts about a blast that “killed hundreds, including kids,” and he said nuh-uh (not his words). In fact, Professor Grossman said, “there never were hundreds killed by an explosion at that hospital. Media reported that the hospital was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike killing 500, but that was based on something a Hamas-controlled agency said and was never supported by evidence.” Professor Grossman went on to say “what apparently did happen is something hit a nearby parking lot and caused a smaller explosion, most likely a rocket fired from Gaza towards I...
Read more

Trump was hit by glass fragments — not a bullet: report

Image
Law enforcement officials have claimed to two different sources that former President Donald Trump was not grazed by a bullet but rather by glass shards. The officials in question told both Newsmax's Alex Salvi and Axios' Juliegrace Brufke that Trump was hit by glass shards that may have erupted from the shattering of a teleprompter that was hit by gunfire. Earlier on Saturday, law enforcement sources confirmed that the person suspected of firing a weapon at a Pennsylvania Trump rally had been killed, as had at least one person in the crowd. Videos showed Trump grabbing his neck after apparent gunshots had been fired before Secret Service agents pulled him to the ground. They then took him away in an armored vehicle to a hospital where he was treated for injuries. The identity of the shooting suspect has not yet been released. from Alternet.org https://ift.tt/ILgqr53 via sinceretalk
Read more