New York Attorney General Letitia James said her “sole focus” is helping Vice President Kamala Harris beat Donald Trump in the election after just months after successfully prosecuting the former president in a controversial $454 million civil fraud judgment.
James has long denied having any personal grudge against Trump, but in his passionate endorsement of Harris during his appearance on the show, he denounced the Republican presidential nominee as an “existential threat.” MSNBC’s “The Reid Out” Late Tuesday.
“At this point, we’re focused on securing the nomination for Vice President Harris and ultimately getting her elected,” the attorney general told host Joy Reid after President Biden abandoned his 2024 reelection campaign.
“That remains my sole focus at this time and that is to continue to defend the rule of law and represent the residents of the great state of New York, as I do every day.”
Asked if he would like Harris to appoint him as attorney general if he secured the White House, James stressed that was his only concern.
Elsewhere in the interview, James took a more forceful stance and continued to attack Trump, who has repeatedly accused James of waging a witch hunt against him, and urged Americans to vote against him.
“He doesn’t care about the rule of law, he doesn’t care about the interests of working class people in this country, he doesn’t care about bringing us together. All he cares about is how it benefits him and his family,” the attorney general argued.
“That’s why we all need to go to the polls quietly and with dignity and cast our vote. There’s so much at stake. It’s really crucial that each and every one of us understands that this person is an existential threat to everything we believe in,” she continued.
“That’s why we must come together and elect Vice President Harris.”
James argued that Harris is “best positioned to attack” her Republican rivals and that Republicans are “frightened” at the prospect of facing her.
“The reality is that Vice President Kamala Harris is overqualified and often underestimated, but she’s exceeding expectations,” James enthused.
“That’s why I support her wholeheartedly. It’s unfortunate and completely inappropriate when individuals incite racism and sexism, and I’m not going to respond and defame her.”
James’ attack on the former commander in chief came after he won a civil fraud lawsuit in February that accused Trump of inflating his assets by billions of dollars to deceive banks and investors into helping him expand his real estate empire.
The 45th president, who is currently appealing a ruling that banned him from doing business in New York for three years, has long accused James of launching a political “witch hunt” since her office first sued her in 2020.
Following the verdict, President Trump slammed the decision as “election interference” and claimed the justice system had been used “as a weapon against my political opponents.”
James, meanwhile, denies that she bears any “personal grudge” against him.
But at one point, the attorney general began to publish daily figures on how much interest Trump may now be paying as the appeals process dragged on, and to attack him on social media.
