First GOP Subpoena Goes Out in Trump Case

Jordan summons a former special assistant district attorney over Trump case
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 6, 2023 4:25 PM CDT
GOP Answers Bragg With Its First Subpoena
Mark Pomerantz arrives at court in New York in 2002.   (AP Photo/David Karp, File)

Two days after former President Donald Trump was charged by the Manhattan district attorney, congressional Republicans responded with the first subpoena in their investigation of the handling of the case. Rep. Jim Jordan, a fervent ally of Trump's, wants Mark Pomerantz, a former special assistant district attorney in the New York office, to come in for a deposition, reports Politico, which has seen a copy of the subpoena. The appearance would take place behind closed doors on April 20. Lower-ranking prosecutors don't often receive congressional subpoenas, and Bragg was critical in a statement posted later Thursday.

Jordan sent Pomerantz a letter at the same time, saying that as the prosecutor "leading the investigation into President Trump's finances, you are uniquely situated to provide information" that would help the House Judiciary Committee conduct oversight and consider legislative changes. The letter also accused District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office of instructing Pomerantz not to cooperate with the committee. In a statement posted on Twitter, Bragg called the GOP efforts an abuse of power and a breach of New York sovereignty, per the Washington Post. "The House GOP continues to attempt to undermine an active investigation and ongoing criminal case with an unprecedented campaign of harassment and intimidation," the statement says.

The committee's findings could lead to laws prohibiting the use of federal forfeiture fund to pay for an investigation of a current or former president or presidential candidate, Jordan has said. Bragg's office has acknowledged using such money for expenses in its investigations of the former president or the Trump organization, per Politico. Jordan has said the committee could subpoena Bragg, as well, and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy suggested as much immediately after Trump was arraigned Tuesday. "Bragg's weaponization of the federal justice process will be held accountable by Congress," McCarthy tweeted. (More congressional Republicans stories.)

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