Rep. Jordan Subpoenas Former Manhattan Prosecutor Who Pushed for Trump Indictment

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) subpoenaed former Manhattan prosecutor Mark Pomerantz, who pushed for an indictment against former President Donald Trump. This move came just days after Trump pleaded not guilty to felony charges brought by the Manhattan district attorney’s office, leading to outrage from Republicans.

On April 6, Jordan wrote (pdf) to Pomerantz, who authored a book titled “People vs. Donald Trump” and was a Manhattan prosecutor under District Attorney (DA) Alvin Bragg, ordering him to appear before the House Judicial Committee to provide testimony.

Pomerantz, who once led an investigation into Trump’s finances, resigned in February 2022 because Bragg was initially unwilling to pursue a criminal case against Trump. Jordan rejected Pomerantz’s refusal to testify voluntarily and demanded that he provide information relevant to the Committee’s oversight and potential legislative reforms.

In response to the subpoena, Bragg’s office accused House Republicans of attempting to “undermine” an active investigation and criminal case “with an unprecedented campaign of harassment and intimidation.”

Alleged Political Motives

Jordan suggested that Pomerantz’s personal contempt for Trump, as revealed in his book, could have played a role in his push to have Trump indicted. He cited a review of Pomerantz’s book that described it as “a 300-page exercise in score-settling and scorn” and said the book “also reveals the extent to which the New York county district attorney’s office’s investigation of President Trump appears to have been politically motivated”.

Jordan also mentioned that at one point in the book, Pomerantz joked that he would have paid money to have the chance to prosecute Trump. At another point, Pomerantz opined that the Manhattan DA’s office would be “warranted in throwing the book” at Trump because he “had become a master of breaking the law in ways that were difficult to reach.” Jordan claimed that these perceptions may have colored Pomerantz’s work as a special assistant district attorney.

House GOP Probes

Jordan has issued requests for testimony from Pomerantz and Carey Dunne, another former Manhattan prosecutor who resigned at the same time as Pomerantz, since the announcement of the indictment against Trump.

Trump, for his part, claims the case against him is politically motivated. He has insisted on his innocence in the face of the 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the weeks before the 2016 presidential election.