‘Gross Abuse of Power’: Dan Goldman Blasts House GOP Leaders Jordan and McCarthy For Coordinating With Trump’s Legal Team

AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) tore into House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) over recent reporting that showed both GOP leaders are coordinating with former President Donald Trump’s legal defense team.

Goldman released a statement on Monday, saying, “Reporting from the New York Times and CNN has revealed that former president Donald Trump’s legal team has been directly coordinating with Republican Committee chairs to interfere with the Manhattan District Attorney’s criminal investigation into the former president, which Chairman Jim Jordan continues to pursue.”

Goldman, a former federal prosecutor based in Manhattan, called out McCarthy and Jordan by name and accused them of “gross abuse of power” in they fiery statement:

If accurate, then House Republicans are using the awesome power of Congress as a taxpayer-funded legal defense team for Donald Trump, a private citizen, who reportedly ‘directed’ the nature and pace of this interference. This gross abuse of power is far outside the jurisdiction of Congress, which has no authority to use Congressional Committees for political or non-legislative purposes.

The American people have a right to know the nature and degree of the coordination among Chairman Jordan, Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Donald Trump, and Mr. Trump’s legal team. It is imperative that Chairman Jordan and Speaker McCarthy immediately make available any documentation or correspondence that would shed light on this reported coordination, including any suggestion by Donald Trump’s lawyer, Joe Tacopina, to initiate an “investigation” into Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg.

Bragg has been asked by multiple House Republican committee chairs to testify before Congress regarding his 34 felony count indictment of the former president but has so far denied their requests.

“Reporting from ABC News indicates that this coordination continues, and that immediately following DA Bragg’s announced indictment of Mr. Trump, the former president began ‘calling congressional allies… urging them to defend him following news of the indictment,’” Goldman’s statement added, concluding:

This is not an impeachment investigation, where Congressional Republicans served as Mr. Trump’s de facto defense lawyers. The rule of law requires that Donald Trump and his lawyers defend his criminal charges in a court of law, not a congressional committee room.

Goldman released a separate statement on Monday slamming Jordan over the House Judiciary Committee’s planned hearing in New York City on April 17. Goldman, who represents Lower Manhattan, told Jordan he is “not welcome” in his district.

“Instead of focusing on improving the lives of the American people, Jim Jordan has decided to come to my district at the behest of Donald Trump to continue to weaponize Congress to obstruct an ongoing, non-federal criminal prosecution,” read Goldman’s statement.

“Chairman Jordan is not welcome in my district for this political stunt that is simply a further waste of taxpayer money to support Donald Trump’s legal defense,” Goldman concluded.

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