Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., defended a Department of Justice (DOJ) order Sunday by federal prosecutors to remove corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
“Well, I think immigration is the priority,” Zinke said in an interview with News Nation about “Hill Sunday.”
Zinke told Adams that “the accusations are numerous,” saying, “But I think the big thrust is immigrants. New York is our biggest city. It should be a shining city, and I think so. there is no. .
“The president saw that, he saw the priorities. He has to work with New York. He was willing to find a partner. Zinke continued.
“Obviously the Trump administration saw that and said, 'What do you know? It's more important to bring New York back to safety and remove the issue of illegal immigration from New York.” He added.
The statement comes days after Trump's DOJ ordered federal prosecutors to withdraw corruption charges against the mayor.
Adams was charged in September with counting conspiracy to solicit contributions by wire fraud, wire fraud, foreigners and bribery. He denied any misconduct.
Deputy Attorney General Emile Bove ordered the prosecutors to dismiss the count without assessing the strength of the case, indicating that the lawyers who filed the charges were nothing wrong.
Instead, he said the incident “inappropriately interfered” in Adams' 2025 mayoral campaign, and the mayor's ability to focus on “illegal immigration and violent crimes that escalated under previous administration policies.” he said he was “overly restricted.”
The move has sparked concerns about possible Quidpros and led to the resignation of interim US lawyers in Manhattan and several other federal prosecutors who refused to withdraw the charges against Adams.
On Friday, Trump shrugged his resignation, suggesting that all prosecutors had been rejected anyway in the next few days.
“I don't know about that,” Trump said in his oval office when asked about the controversy in the Adams case. “Obviously, I'm not involved in it, but I'll say this: if they have problems – and if these are mostly people from the previous administration, you understand. What you're doing is because you're coming and you're putting in new people.
“So when you say you've resigned, they're probably gone anyway,” Trump continued. “But I don't know anything about the individual cases. I know they didn't feel that way. They also felt that it was unfair in the election.”
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