Congressional Republicans put Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on notice saying he faces a Thursday deadline to come forward to appear before three congressional panels for a transcribed interview.
House Administration Committee chairman Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI) said: “We gave him until Thursday to come forward. we look forward to his response. The Committee on House Administration has jurisdiction over federal election law.
“So, we’re working with Chairman Comer and working with Chairman Jordan. I think the question that needs to be answered is, is this a political move? When you look at the fact that previous prosecutors have reviewed this and ultimately made a decision not to prosecute, and he made a previous decision he wasn’t going to move forward and now he is moving forward, what changed?
“The only thing that changed is President Trump has announced he is running for reelection.
“I think that broadly for the American people we are concerned about the politicization of our judicial system, and as you look at this case there are clear questions that I think need to be answered about whether there is a misuse of federal funds that are intended to actually do things like reduce crime that are actually being repurposed for political purposes.
“Money is fungible. It depends on how it is tied.
“Those are the questions I think are appropriate to ask and I think we need the answers to. So I think it’s one of the reasons we’ve asked him to come in and explain. We’ve asked him to come in and do a written transcript and deposition—that’s in the letter.
“That’s why we’re asking him to come before us—is there a misuse of federal funds? It’s a question to ask. We want to broadly depoliticize our judicial system, which has been highly politicized over the years.
“We’ll make decisions and consultations with Jim Jordan and Jamie Comer if he doesn’t respond.
“I’m hopeful that he responds.
“There are series of documents we set out in the letter and I think people should understand—the American people should know—what is exactly transpiring and leading to the conclusion he is likely to move forward on.
“So this is the broader question that’s underlying this which is are there federal resources being utilized for political purposes and that is I think a really appropriate question I think for your federal government to be asking local prosecutors.
“We’re going to continue to track this.
“I don’t want to set forward an exact path we have to take.
“Step one is I hope he comes in and shares his explanation for this and then we will go from there. I think we will be far more informed if he came forward and shared his view.
“If these charges come forward, there is a real concern about the precedent this would set.
“We live in the greatest democracy the world has ever seen in the United States of America and what we can’t allow is a weaponization of our judicial system for political purposes.
“Now he is almost making himself almost more powerful than the DOJ.
“So, prosecutors could be utilized in these elections for political purposes rather than what local prosecutors truly are for, which is to keep their cities safe—which is the opposite of what he has been doing.
“You can look at how many felonies he’s brought down to misdemeanors and how crime has spiked in liberal cities across the country.
“In this case, it appears he is taking a misdemeanor and running a unique argument to try to create a felony charge.
“Myself and a lot of conservatives have been really concerned for a long time about the politicization of our judicial system.
“This really highlights the risk of what can occur if you allow your judicial system to be politicized and used for purposes other than keeping your community safe.
“We’ve seen this in cities across the country where progressive, liberal prosecutors win elections and don’t utilize their positions to actually keep their cities safe.
“I think some of this is we’re going to work together as a team between Jim Jordan, Jim Comer, and myself to get the answers.
“So rather than creating a situation where there is a conflict between the three committees, I actually think we have a unique opportunity to work together. Obviously, Jim Comer has oversight over pretty much everything.
“Jim Jordan has it as it relates to criminal law. We have it as it relates to election law.
“We’re going to leverage and utilize the strength of our committees to get the answers for the American people that I think the American people deserve.
“This is, you bring up I think the broader concern of what happens if you allow your judicial system to be politicized,” Steil said.
“It’s the exact reason you want to depoliticize your judicial system. We see time and time again liberal prosecutors come in with a political agenda rather than an agenda of keeping their cities safe.”
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House Admin Chairman @RepBryanSteil, Judiciary Chairman @Jim_Jordan , and House Oversight Chairman @RepJamesComer sent a letter to Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg demanding communications, documents & testimony relating to Bragg’s unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority. pic.twitter.com/jW3RklvHWu— House Admin. Committee GOP (@HouseAdmin) March 20, 2023
