Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Friday declined to testify before House lawmakers next week about the prosecution against former President Donald Trump.
Bragg’s attorney, Leslie Dubeck, said in a letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) that the district attorney could not attend the session due to “scheduling conflicts,” but Dubeck suggested that Bragg might cooperate with the committee in the future.
“Our office is committed to voluntary cooperation,” Dubeck wrote in the letter, first reported by Politico. “Cooperation includes making the District Attorney available to testify on the office’s behalf on an agreed-upon date and evaluating the appropriateness of allowing Assistant District Attorneys to testify publicly about ongoing cases in their custody. However, the proposed dates selected by the Subcommittee without consulting the office result in a variety of scheduling conflicts.”
House Republicans are seeking to drag Bragg before the House on June 13 to answer questions about the prosecution of Trump, who was convicted on all 34 counts of falsifying business records brought by the district attorney.
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Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg speaks with his staff at a press conference after former U.S. President Donald Trump was convicted of all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in his first criminal trial. (Getty Images)
Trump, who maintains his innocence, has called the investigation a “witch hunt” orchestrated by President Biden and the Democratic Party to disrupt the presidential election. Biden and Bragg have both denied the allegations, but Republicans continue to say the investigation was politically motivated. Bragg campaigned on a promise to “get Trump.”
In his letter, Dubeck criticized the Judiciary Committee for inviting Bragg to testify, writing that Jordan “has not been clear about the scope of his proposed testimony.”
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Jordan is seeking testimony from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg about the prosecution against former President Trump. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Dubeck also wrote that Trump’s sentencing hearing, scheduled for July 11, and ongoing proceedings in trial and appeals courts mean Bragg may not be able to testify. Trump has said he will appeal the conviction.
“Participating in a hearing at this time could adversely affect these efforts,” Dubec wrote.
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Donald Trump arrives at Trump Tower on Thursday, May 30, 2024, after being convicted of 34 counts of first-degree falsifying business records. (Felipe Ramares for Fox News Digital)
She called on the committee to negotiate a new hearing date with Bragg’s office and to clarify what specifically Republicans want Bragg to testify about.
“Everything is on the table as to what happens next,” said Stephanie Farrell, a spokeswoman for Jordan.
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Jordan told Fox News Digital earlier this week that he was proposing a budget that would “defund the court activities” of state and federal prosecutors leading “politically sensitive investigations,” specifically naming Special Counsel Jack Smith, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
In addition to the New York conviction, Trump is currently awaiting a Supreme Court ruling on whether he will be granted immunity from charges brought against him in the January 6 Smith investigation, a trial date on charges brought in the Smith secret records case, and a trial date on charges brought by Willis in Georgia.
Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
