Trump Action Archive

Supporting reports

• Letitia James pleads not guilty to mortgage fraud charges brought by Trump-appointed prosecutor — New York Attorney General Letitia James appeared in federal district court in Norfolk, Virginia, and pleaded not guilty to charges of bank fraud and false statements. The indictment, filed by Trump-appointed US Attorney Lindsey Halligan, alleges James falsely claimed a Norfolk home purchased in 2020 would be a secondary residence to obtain favorable loan terms when she used it as an investment property. Career prosecutors had objected to the charges, citing insufficient evidence and no material profit to James. James is expected to file a motion to dismiss on grounds that Halligan was improperly appointed.

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• Illinois establishes Accountability Commission to document federal agent misconduct — Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker established the Illinois Accountability Commission to compile evidence of harassment, intimidation, brutalization, and detention of American citizens and legal residents by federal agents. Pritzker stated that federal agency supervisors and inspectors general would normally enforce accountability, but Trump has fired 17 inspectors general and installed cronies at the Department of Justice while MAGA Congress members refuse to conduct oversight. The commission will create an official public record of abuses and rights violations for potential future prosecution.

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• Comey files motion to dismiss charges, citing selective prosecution and unlawful appointment of prosecutor — Former FBI director James Comey filed a motion in federal court requesting dismissal of criminal charges against him on two grounds: selective prosecution by a politically motivated Trump administration and the unlawful appointment of the US attorney who filed the charges. Comey's lawyers presented Trump's public statements disparaging Comey as evidence of presidential animus, noted that career prosecutors declined to bring charges, and argued the interim US attorney exceeded her 120-day authority limit. The charges relate to Comey's September 2020 congressional testimony regarding alleged unauthorized FBI leaks.

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• House Republicans referred former CIA Director John Brennan for criminal prosecution — House Republicans referred former CIA Director John Brennan to the Justice Department for criminal prosecution, accusing him of lying to Congress about the 2016 Steele dossier. In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, the committee claimed there is "significant evidence" Brennan made "numerous willfully and intentionally false statements" while testifying about the CIA's involvement with the dossier. Brennan called the criminal referral "ludicrous" and accused House Judiciary Chair Rep. Jim Jordan of "trying to get into the action of Trump's revenge tour."

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• Just Security documents 35 cases of government lying to federal judges — The nonpartisan law journal Just Security discovered more than 35 cases in which judges have stated that the government is lying to them. One judge warned that "trust that had been earned over generations has been lost in weeks."

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• U.S. District Judge James Boasberg orders halt to migrant deportation flights — After Venezuelan migrants sued, U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg held a hearing and ordered that planes carrying migrants not leave and that any planes already in air be returned. The order was issued in response to the DOJ's plan to deport migrants without due process under the Alien Enemies Act.
• Trump administration defies federal court order on migrant deportations — More than five hours after Judge Boasberg's order halting the deportation flights, planes carrying Venezuelan migrants arrived at CECOT, a prison facility in El Salvador. The administration proceeded with the deportation despite the federal court's explicit order to halt the flights and return any planes already in air, constituting direct defiance of judicial authority.

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• Trump's interim U.S. attorney for Eastern District of Virginia leaked grand jury testimony to reporter — Lawfare reported that Trump's hand-picked interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Lindsey Halligan, engaged in a Signal exchange with reporter Anna Bower in which she divulged details about grand jury testimony in her criminal case against New York Attorney General Letitia James. Halligan later told Bower that their entire correspondence was off the record, despite the fact that such requests must be made in advance and agreed to by the reporter. The incident raised serious concerns about prosecutorial ethics and the politicization of the Justice Department.
• US Attorney Halligan's use of auto-delete Signal messages potentially violates federal records-retention laws — Lindsey Halligan, interim US attorney for the eastern district of Virginia, used Signal with auto-delete settings (eight-hour message expiration) to communicate with a journalist about her prosecution of New York Attorney General Letitia James. Watchdog groups American Oversight and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington warned that this practice potentially violates the Federal Records Act and DOJ records-retention rules. American Oversight filed a public records request for the messages; both groups called for investigation by Attorney General Pam Bondi and the DOJ Office of Inspector General.

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• Trump administration officials view interim U.S. attorney Halligan as unprepared and destined for defeat — Zeteo reported that numerous Trump administration officials view Lindsey Halligan, Trump's handpicked prosecutor going after his political enemies, as being in over her head, ill-prepared for her high-stakes role, and destined for a number of crushing defeats in court. One Trump-aligned federal law enforcement official called Halligan a "trainwreck" who is "going to be the most subpoenaed person" when Democrats regain control of Congress or the Justice Department.

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• Trump administration fired two federal prosecutors who opposed charges against Letitia James — CBS News reported that the Trump administration fired two federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia last week who opposed bringing criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James. The firings appeared to be retaliation for the prosecutors' professional judgment that the case lacked sufficient evidence.

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• Federal prosecutors accused James Comey's lead defense attorney of leaking classified information — Federal prosecutors leading the criminal case against former FBI Director James Comey accused his lead defense attorney of being involved in leaking material to the media shortly after Trump fired Comey in 2017. Prosecutors argued this constituted a conflict of interest that could result in the attorney's disqualification from the case. Comey's legal team responded that the filing was an attempt to "defame" the attorney with "demonstrably false allegations" and denied any leaking of classified information.