FILE PHOTO: U.S. Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH) reacts, during a House Judiciary Committee hearing “Victims of Violent Crime in Manhattan” that examines how Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s policies may have led to an increase in violent crime and created a dangerous community for residents in New York City, U.S., April 17, 2023. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo
REUTERS (New York) — A former prosecutor who once led the Manhattan district attorney’s criminal investigation into former U.S. President Donald Trump must testify before a congressional committee, a U.S. judge held on Wednesday.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat who got Trump indicted in the first ever criminal charges against a former president, last week sued Republican Representative Jim Jordan to block a subpoena for testimony from Mark Pomerantz, a former prosecutor who once led the office’s Trump probe.
The subpoena came from the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, which Jordan chairs. Pomerantz’s deposition is scheduled for Thursday.
FILE PHOTO: New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg speaks during a news conference at 1 Police Plaza in New York City, U.S., April 18, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
After hearing arguments in federal court in Manhattan on whether to block the subpoena, U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil issued a written ruling approving the subpoena but encouraging the parties to reach a compromise as to how the subpoena of Pomerantz would proceed.
“Mr. Pomerantz must appear for the congressional deposition,” Vyskocil wrote, adding in a reference to a phrase frequently used by Trump’s critics, “No one is above the law.”
In a statement, a spokesperson for Jordan said the decision shows “Congress has the ability to conduct oversight.”
Bragg’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Theodore Boutrous, a lawyer for Bragg, argued that Jordan was seeking to interfere in a local prosecution and “intimidate” the district attorney’s office.
Matthew Berry, the House general counsel, countered that the subpoena was covered by constitutional protection for “speech or debate” in Congress, and that the committee needed Pomerantz’s testimony to weigh legislation restricting what he called “politically motivated prosecutions” of presidents.
Trump, the Republican front-runner in the 2024 presidential campaign, pleaded not guilty on April 4 to 34 felony charges over a hush money payment made before the 2016 election to porn star Stormy Daniels, to prevent her from discussing a sexual encounter she said they had. He denies the liaison took place.
Vyskocil, who was appointed to the bench by Trump, said she did not endorse either side’s “agenda.” She said she presumed Bragg was acting in good faith, but some of his constituents wish to see Trump prosecuted. She said Jordan had also “initiated a political response” to Bragg’s charges.
“The sole question before the Court at this time is whether Bragg has a legal basis to quash a congressional subpoena that was issued with a valid legislative purpose,” she wrote. “He does not.”
