The Manhattan district attorney's criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump's business dealings hit a snag on Wednesday when the two prosecutors leading the probe resigned without warning or explanation, The New York Times reported.
According to the Times, "the prosecutors, Carey R. Dunne and Mark F. Pomerantz, submitted their resignations after the new Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, indicated to them that he had doubts about moving forward with a case against Mr. Trump."
The investigation began under Bragg's predecessor, Cyrus Vance Jr., as a probe into whether Trump paid hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels but now focuses on whether he defrauded lenders by overinflating the value of his assets. Vance retired at the end of 2021 after three terms.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The special grand jury investigating Trump reportedly has not questioned any witnesses in more than a month.
This setback for the investigation comes less than a week after what many saw as a major breakthrough in the parallel civil investigation being conducted by New York Attorney General Letitia James. A judge ruled on Thursday that Trump and his two eldest children — Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr. — must testify under oath, though Trump could choose to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
This could be good news for the former president, whose recent legal setbacks led Washington Post columnist George Conway to speculate that "the beginning of the end for Trump" may have arrived.
Trump is also facing three lawsuits, which a judge declined to dismiss on Friday, alleging that he incited the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. In Georgia, a special grand jury is investigating whether he broke the law when he urged Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) to "find" enough votes to overturn President Biden's victory.
-
Bluetoothing: the phenomenon driving HIV spike in FijiUnder the Radar ‘Blood-swapping’ between drug users fuelling growing health crisis on Pacific island
-
Marisa Silver’s 6 favorite books that capture a lifetimeFeature The author recommends works by John Williams, Ian McEwan, and more
-
Book reviews: ‘We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution’ and ‘Will There Ever Be Another You’Feature The many attempts to amend the U.S. Constitution and Patricia Lockwood’s struggle with long Covid
-
Can Trump bully Netanyahu into Gaza peace?Today's Big Question The Israeli leader was ‘strong-armed’ into new peace deal
-
Court allows Trump’s Texas troops to head to ChicagoSpeed Read Trump is ‘using our service members as pawns in his illegal effort to militarize our nation’s cities,’ said Gov. J.B. Pritzker
-
The GOP: Merging flag and crossFeature Donald Trump has launched a task force to pursue “anti-Christian policies”
-
Five key questions about the Gaza peace dealThe Explainer Many ‘unresolved hurdles’ remain before Donald Trump’s 20-point plan can get the go-ahead
-
Judge bars Trump’s National Guard moves in OregonSpeed Read In an emergency hearing, a federal judge blocked President Donald Trump from sending National Guard troops into Portland
-
Russia: already at war with Europe?Talking Point As Kremlin begins ‘cranking up attacks’ on Ukraine’s European allies, questions about future action remain unanswered
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denialSpeed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartelsspeed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats
