Justice Department Opens Investigation into New York Attorney General
The Justice Department has taken a significant step in its ongoing efforts to scrutinize perceived enemies of President Donald Trump, issuing subpoenas to the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James and convening a grand jury investigation into her office. According to multiple sources, the US attorney's office for the Northern District of New York has issued two subpoenas seeking information about James' investigations into the Trump Organization and National Rifle Association.
These developments come as part of a broader pattern of the Trump administration taking aim at perceived political foes, including former FBI Director James Comey and former CIA Director John Brennan. The office of special counsel earlier this month launched a Hatch Act investigation into former special counsel Jack Smith, who indicted Trump twice in 2023.
James is among a long list of Trump's perceived political enemies who are now facing scrutiny from his administration. The Justice Department has also opened investigations into other notable figures, including Miles Taylor and Chris Krebs, who was fired for saying the 2020 election was not rigged.
Abbe Lowell, an attorney for James, described the investigation as "blatant and desperate" and accused the Trump administration of trying to carry out a "political retribution campaign." Lowell also warned that using the Department of Justice to punish elected officials is an attack on the rule of law and a "dangerous escalation" by this administration.
"If prosecutors carry out this improper tactic and are genuinely interested in the truth, we are ready and waiting with the facts and law," Lowell said. The White House has declined to comment on the investigation.
James' office took on the Trump Organization in a civil fraud case last year, alleging that they inflated the value of their properties to mislead lenders and insurers. A judge found Trump liable for fraud and ordered him to pay over $450 million. Trump is currently appealing the judgment and has posted a $175 million bond while his appeal is pending.
The tension between James and Trump was evident during the 11-week trial, which took place in 2023 and 2024 ahead of his New York criminal trial. Trump criticized James from the witness stand and in the hallways of the courtroom, calling her a "political hack" and saying that she should be ashamed of herself.
James countered with her own statements outside of the courthouse in lower Manhattan and through social media videos. Her office has also taken on the National Rifle Association, winning judgments forcing the organization to reform its structure.
A jury in February 2024 found that the NRA mismanaged charitable funds when it failed to stop top executives from diverting millions of dollars for lavish personal trips, no-show contracts, and other questionable expenditures. The group's longtime leader Wayne LaPierre should pay the gun rights group $4.3 million in damages for mismanagement and misspending charitable funds.
"Any weaponization of the justice system should disturb every American," a spokesman for James' office said. "We stand strongly behind our successful litigation against the Trump Organization and the National Rifle Association, and we will continue to stand up for New Yorkers' rights."