Yet another criminal investigation of Donald Trump is about to kick off. According to The New York Times, the Manhattan district attorney’s office is looking to restart its criminal probe of the former president. That comes on the heels of the Department of Justice announcing a special counsel targeting Trump over his taking of classified documents.
Back in April, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg decided to essentially shutter the investigation into an alleged “hush-money” payment to porn worker Stormy Daniels due to a lack of progress. Two of the office’s top prosecutors working on the case resigned in protest, running to the media to proclaim that Trump was a criminal being let off the hook. It was a stunning mask-off moment, showcasing the lawfare that takes place so often in institutions we are asked to trust.
Apparently, the pressure was just too much, though. Now, that criminal investigation is back on, and prosecutors are searching for ways to send the bad orange man to jail.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office has moved to jump-start its criminal investigation into Donald Trump, according to people with knowledge of the matter, seeking to breathe new life into an inquiry that once seemed to have reached a dead end.
Under the new district attorney, Alvin Bragg, the prosecutors have returned to the long-running investigation’s original focus: a hush-money payment to a porn star who said she had an affair with Trump.
What makes this so insidious is the fact that it’s so obviously a fishing expedition meant to push partisan aims. For years, the DA’s office has been unable to build a case around the hush-money payment. In fact, their case was so weak that they were thinking about relying on a completely unproven legal theory. Bragg booted that idea when he took office. Now, the “zombie theory,” which is apparently what in-office prosecutors call it, is back.
Does this sound like how the legal system is supposed to work?
The idea of building a case around the hush money had resurfaced with such regularity in recent years that prosecutors came to refer to it as the “zombie theory,” an idea that just wouldn’t die, one of the people said.
Under Bragg’s predecessor, the district attorney’s office rejected the idea of focusing a case solely on the hush money, concluding, with the help of outside legal experts, that it would hinge on a largely untested and therefore risky legal theory. And if Bragg were to charge Trump without uncovering any new evidence or relying on a more conventional theory, he would risk having a judge or appellate court throw out the case.
According to the Times, the plan here is to once again try to get Allen Weisselberg to “flip.” In fact, prosecutors are getting ready to bring more charges against the former Trump associate in an unrelated case in order to apply more pressure. Again, does that sound like how a fair and unbiased justice system operates?
I’m not even sure what the criminal allegation is supposed to be here, and I’m not sure the Manhattan DA knows either. The sole motivation appears to be a desperate desire to take down Trump, no matter how legally questionable that pursuit might be. The collective forces of government are flooding the zone to reach that goal.
I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating. If you live in a blue area with a blue district attorney, you need to think about moving. Because if you don’t hold the right political views, whether we are talking about a situation like Trump’s or Kyle Rittenhouse’s, they will try to destroy you. And the full force of government is nothing to play with.