“New York remains one of the safest big cities in the U.S.,” the statement said.
As all eyes turned to the grand jury that could vote to bring charges against Trump stemming from hush-money payments, House Republicans rallied in support of the former president by sending a letter to Bragg earlier on Monday, asking for testimony and documents from his investigation, which they described a “politically motivated prosecutorial decision.”
“You are reportedly about to engage in an unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority: the indictment of a former president of the United States and current declared candidate for that office,” said the letter that was signed by Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), James Comer (R-Ky.), and Bryan Steil (R-Wis.), chairs of the Judiciary, Oversight and Administration committees, respectively.
The letter is the first investigative action that the GOP has taken in an attempt to look closely at those running the investigation into Trump’s role in hush-money payments made to Stormy Daniels, an adult-film actress.
The case involves a $130,000 payment made during the frenetic 2016 presidential campaign, a former Trump lawyer and fixer who served time in prison, and a prosecutor who could seek criminal charges against a former president now running for office once again.
Bragg’s response to the House GOP’s letter did not confirm if his office would comply with any of their demands.
Other Republicans have also raised questions about the investigation by slamming Bragg.
During a news conference on Sunday, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Bragg’s investigation was politically motivated and that the district attorney was not doing enough to control crime in New York City.
“So this guy is trying to create something when he has all the crime happening in New York, and he prides himself on not prosecuting everything else,” McCarthy said from the Republican retreat in Orlando.
The Manhattan DA’s office, in its statement, said New York “remains one of the safest big cities in the U.S.”
McCarthy also said that people should not protest in support of Trump if he is indicted and arrested.
On Saturday, Trump claimed his arrest was imminent in the criminal investigation, and called for protests by his supporters.
“WILL BE ARRESTED ON TUESDAY OF NEXT WEEK. PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!” he said via Truth Social, writing from his home in Florida.
While the grand jury was still hearing testimony about the case Monday and hasn’t returned an indictment yet, authorities in New York were preparing for possible protests.
