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NY AG Letitia James on her indictment: a ‘desperate weaponization of our justice system’New York state attorney general Letitia James sent out this statement on the news that she has been indicted by a federal grand jury for bank fraud after one of Trump’s US attorneys, Lindsey Halligan, personally presented the case to the grand jury.She also posted a video of her statement on X:This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system.I am not fearful — I am fearless. We will fight these baseless charges aggressively, and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights. pic.twitter.com/X9U0EsHuGM— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) October 9, 2025
“This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system. He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State Attorney General.“These charges are baseless, and the president’s own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost. The president’s actions are a grave violation of our Constitutional order and have drawn sharp criticism from members of both parties.“His decision to fire a United States Attorney who refused to bring charges against me – and replace them with someone who is blindly loyal not to the law, but to the president – is antithetical to the bedrock principles of our country. This is the time for leaders on both sides of the aisle to speak out against this blatant perversion of our system of justice.“I stand strongly behind my office’s litigation against the Trump Organization. We conducted a two-year investigation based on the facts and evidence – not politics. Judges have upheld the trial court’s finding that Donald Trump, his company, and his two sons are liable for fraud.“I am a proud woman of faith, and I know that faith and fear cannot share the same space. And so today I am not fearful, I am fearless, and as my faith teaches me, no weapon formed against me shall prosper. We will fight these baseless charges aggressively, and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights. And I will continue to do my job.”ShareUpdated at 22.43 BSTKey eventsShow key events onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this featureAn update from Illinois: US district judge April Perry blocked the deployment of National Guard troops in the Chicago area for two weeks, finding no substantial evidence that a “danger of rebellion” is brewing in Illinois, the Associated Press reports. It’s a victory for Democratic officials who lead the state and city and have traded insults with President Donald Trump about his drive to put troops on the ground in major urban areas.The lawsuit was filed Monday by Chicago and Illinois to stop the deployments of Illinois and Texas Guard members. Some troops were already at an immigration building in the Chicago suburb of Broadview when Perry heard arguments on Thursday.The building has been the site of occasional clashes between protesters and agents.Perry said the actions of the Department of Homeland Security are largely rooted in President Donald Trump’s “animus toward Illinois elected officials.” She expressed skepticism of the federal government’s characterization of protests in Broadview.“DHS’s narrative of events is simply unreliable,” she said.Heavy turnout at the downtown courthouse caused officials to open an overflow room with a video feed of the hearing. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson sat in a corner of the courtroom.ShareAs my colleague Sam Levine notes today, Trump has made little secret of his desire to use the justice department to punish his rivals. “What about Comey, Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff, Leticia??? They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done,” he said in a September post on Truth Social that was addressed to Pam Bondi, the US attorney general. “We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility.”Share“This is what tyranny looks like,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who represents New York, said in a statement on Letitia James’ indictment. “President Trump is using the Justice Department as his personal attack dog.”ShareThe United States is sending about 200 troops to Israel to support and help monitor the ceasefire deal in Gaza as part of a team that includes partner nations, non-governmental organizations and private-sector entities, US officials said Thursday, the Associated Press reports:Share“Openly seeeking revenge on his political opponents…Trump is ripping a page right out of the authoritarian handbook.” That’s Elizabeth Warren, Democratic senator from Massachusetts, responding to today’s indictment of Letitia James, the New York attorney general who filed a civil fraud case against Trump in New York, and won it. Trump has long accused James of leading a “witch hunt” against him. Her full statement:
The President of the United States is openly seeking revenge on his political opponents. First Jim Comey. Now Tish James. Anyone who seeks to hold Donald Trump accountable could be next. Trump is ripping a page right out of the authoritarian handbook.
Share“Simply un-American.” That’s how the Democratic Attorneys General Association characterized today’s indictment of New York attorney general Letitia James, a member of the group, in a statement:
Trump’s weaponization of the Department of Justice to attack a democratically elected Attorney General on baseless charges is appalling. His administration has been threatening and harassing New York AG Tish James for months, and this latest action takes his unjust crusade against her to a horrifying new level. AG James has always fought for justice and done right by the people of New York; defending the rule of law and the Constitution should not make her a target for political retaliation. To abuse the power of government to pursue personal vendettas and continuously harass AG James for the sake of political retribution is beyond reprehensible.
ShareDemocratic congressional leader Hakeem Jeffries, who represents a New York district, has also made a statement denouncing the Trump administration’s “malicious prosecution” of New York attorney general Letitia James:
The baseless indictment of New York Attorney General Letitia James is part of Donald Trump’s corrupt weaponization of the criminal justice system against anyone who has sought to hold him accountable. Attorney General James has courageously been at the forefront of successfully challenging the Trump administration’s lawless and deeply unpopular overreach. At all times, she has followed the facts, applied the law and been guided by the Constitution.The malicious prosecution of Attorney General James has no legitimate basis in law or fact, was brought by a corrupt political hack and will not survive scrutiny in a Court of Law. Donald Trump continues to disgrace the presidency and the Department of Justice. Those sycophants who aid and abet the President’s vengeful schemes will not be able to hide from the serious legal consequences of their behavior. They will be held accountable.
ShareA US federal judge in Chicago temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s deployment of federalized National Guard troops in the state on Thursday in response to a lawsuit filed by the Illinois attorney general, Reuters reports.We’re still waiting on the full details of that order.From the courtroom in Chicago, a local federal courts reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times, Jon Seidel, highlighted some of Judge April Perry’s comments about the order.Perry said that the Department of Homeland Security’s characterization of events in Chicago lacked credibility, and that “I have seen no credible evidence that there is danger of rebellion in the state of Illinois.”Perry also noted that deploying National Guard troops from other states to Chicago to ostensibly make the city safer had some obvious problems, and suggested that local law enforcement had more context for dealing with community members in times of crisis that out of state troops would have.“Chicago’s history of strained policing community relations is extremely well documented, but also fairly nuanced,” Perry said, per Seidel’s reporting. “It’s something I think state and local authorities understand extremely well, and it can be hard for federal authorities, and certainly those from Texas, to appreciate.”Chicago’s history of using violent policing tactics on Black residents is extensive, and includes landmark 2015 legislation creating reparations for decades of torture by former Chicago police commander Jon Burge.ShareFederal judge says she will block the deployment of National Guard in Illinois, for nowIn a courtroom in Chicago, federal judge April Perry just said she is issuing an order that the Trump administration is “temporarily enjoined from ordering the federalization and deployment of the National Guard of the United States within Illinois,” the Chicago Sun-Times’ Jon Seidel reports, with Reuters confirming.ShareUpdated at 23.34 BSTA federal judge’s ruling in Illinois, where the state is seeking a temporary restraining order to block the Trump administration from sending in the National Guard, is hinging on a “credibility determination,” with the judge stating that the Department of Homeland Security’s “perception of events” have been “simply unreliable,” Jon Seidel of the Chicago Sun-Times reports from the courtroom.“I simply cannot credit [the Trump administration’s] declarations to the extent they contradict state and local law enforcement. … DHS’ perception of events are simply unreliable,” US district judge April Perry said, per Seidel’s reporting.Seidel also reports that the judge cited multiple other legal decisions in the past 48 hours, which, she said, “all cast significant doubt on DHS’ credibility and assessment of what is happening on the streets of Chicago.”ShareWe’re still waiting on the details, but local journalists in Illinois are reporting that US district Judge April Perry is granting “in part” Illinois’ request for a temporary restraining order to halt the Trump administration’s deployment of National Guard troops into the state.Jon Seidel, the federal courts reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times, has some key points from the judge’s comments, though he also notes on social media that “We still don’t know the details of her order. She said she’s granting the state’s request ‘in part,’ which indicates some part of it is also being denied. Stay tuned.”One of the judge’s key lines so far, Seidel and othere report: “I have seen no credible evidence that there is danger of rebellion in the state of Illinois.”Seidel reported about ten minutes ago that the judge “just handed a draft of her order to both sides and left the bench. She’s letting them look at it until she returns.”ShareUpdated at 23.19 BSTNew York governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, has also made a statement in support of New York attorney general Letitia James, accusing Trump of weaponizing his Justice Department who “punish those who hold the powerful accountable.”New Yorkers know @NewYorkStateAG James for her integrity, her independence, and her relentless fight for justice.What we’re seeing today is nothing less than the weaponization of the Justice Department to punish those who hold the powerful accountable.— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) October 9, 2025
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ShareACLU calls indictment against Letitia James ‘brazen abuse of power’ by TrumpThe American Civil Liberties Union is calling the Trump Justice Department’s indictment of New York attorney general Letitia James “the latest in a long list of brazen abuses of power by President Trump” and a “stunning violation.” “He has continued to weaponize our nation’s judicial system to settle personal vendettas, attack his political opponents, and silence his critics,” the ACLU and the New York Civil Liberties Union said in a statement.“President Trump’s open interference in the Department of Justice’s investigation – demanding charges, forcing out the prosecutor, and installing a loyalist – is a stunning violation of our country’s long tradition of an independent judicial system. The indictment of Letitia James makes it clearer than ever that President Trump has prioritized retaliation over the rule of law.“Whether it’s targeting Jimmy Kimmel, James Comey, Letitia James, or the millions of everyday people exercising their rights to free speech, this administration’s efforts to prosecute, bully, and intimidate will only strengthen the People’s resolve to exercise our freedoms and defend our democracy.”ShareUpdated at 23.55 BSTNY AG Letitia James on her indictment: a ‘desperate weaponization of our justice system’New York state attorney general Letitia James sent out this statement on the news that she has been indicted by a federal grand jury for bank fraud after one of Trump’s US attorneys, Lindsey Halligan, personally presented the case to the grand jury.She also posted a video of her statement on X:This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system.I am not fearful — I am fearless. We will fight these baseless charges aggressively, and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights. pic.twitter.com/X9U0EsHuGM— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) October 9, 2025
“This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system. He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State Attorney General.“These charges are baseless, and the president’s own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost. The president’s actions are a grave violation of our Constitutional order and have drawn sharp criticism from members of both parties.“His decision to fire a United States Attorney who refused to bring charges against me – and replace them with someone who is blindly loyal not to the law, but to the president – is antithetical to the bedrock principles of our country. This is the time for leaders on both sides of the aisle to speak out against this blatant perversion of our system of justice.“I stand strongly behind my office’s litigation against the Trump Organization. We conducted a two-year investigation based on the facts and evidence – not politics. Judges have upheld the trial court’s finding that Donald Trump, his company, and his two sons are liable for fraud.“I am a proud woman of faith, and I know that faith and fear cannot share the same space. And so today I am not fearful, I am fearless, and as my faith teaches me, no weapon formed against me shall prosper. We will fight these baseless charges aggressively, and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights. And I will continue to do my job.”ShareUpdated at 22.43 BST
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