Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg filed a lawsuit against Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) on Tuesday in an effort to prevent Jordan from questioning a former prosecutor about Bragg’s case against former President Donald Trump.
The lawsuit seeks to block Jordan, the House Judiciary Committee chairman, from following through on a subpoena he issued to Mark Pomerantz, a former special assistant in the Manhattan district attorney’s office who quit when Bragg took over.
It also aims more broadly to “put an end to this constitutionally destructive fishing expedition,” in reference to Jordan’s overarching investigation of Bragg.
Bragg, according to a memorandum with the filing, is not only looking to stop Jordan “from enforcing this unlawful and unconstitutional subpoena” by obtaining a temporary restraining order, but also “to prohibit Mr. Pomerantz from complying with it.”
The memorandum described the move to subpoena Pomerantz, which was first reported by Breitbart News last week, as an “abuse” of congressional authority.
“Their latest salvo—the subpoena to Mr. Pomerantz—is an abuse of congressional process and a brazen incursion into New York’s exercise of its sovereign prosecutorial powers,” it stated.
Jordan condemned Bragg’s latest legal action in a statement online, saying, “First they indict a president for no crime. Then, they sue to block congressional oversight when we ask questions about the federal funds they say they used to do it.”
Jordan’s committee likewise issued a statement online, claiming Bragg was “scared” of oversight.
“Why’s Alvin Bragg scared of congressional oversight? Really makes you wonder..” the committee wrote.
Pomerantz resigned from Bragg’s office in February 2022 out of frustration that Bragg had put the Manhattan office’s years-long Trump investigation that Pomerantz had been working on on hold.
Pomerantz went widely public with his grievances about Bragg’s hesitations with prosecuting Trump ― his resignation letter turned up in the New York Times and he went on to publish a book about the case against Trump ― upon his exit from the office.
Jordan initially wrote a letter to Pomerantz asking him to come in and testify before Congress.
Despite Pomerantz being a private citizen, Bragg interceded in the matter by sending a letter to Pomerantz, reviewed by Breitbart News, instructing him not to provide Jordan with any materials relevant to Pomerantz’s work at the Manhattan office.
Pomerantz informed the committee he would be complying with Bragg, which led to Jordan subpoenaing Pomerantz.
The lawsuit against a sitting congressman marks an escalation in an already heated back-and-forth between Bragg and Jordan, who have exchanged contentious letters about congressional Republicans’ desire to probe what they view as a political, rather than sincere, prosecution of Trump.
Bragg claims Congress does not have the authority to meddle in ongoing state criminal investigations, while Jordan argues that his committee has legislative cause to probe Bragg’s activity and a responsibility to review Bragg’s use of federal funds.
Bragg’s lawsuit stated, “In sum, Congress lacks any valid legislative purpose to engage in a free-ranging campaign of harassment in retaliation for the District Attorney’s investigation and prosecution of Mr. Trump under the laws of New York. That campaign is a direct threat to federalism and the sovereign interests of the State of New York.”
The case is Bragg v. Jordan, No. 23-cv-3032 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Write to Ashley Oliver at aoliver@breitbart.com. Follow her on Twitter at @asholiver.
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