Colangelo’s Role in Trump Cases Revealed
Recently, it has come to light that Matthew Colangelo, the Manhattan prosecutor behind the “hush money” case involving President Trump, played a more significant part in the federal case against him than was previously understood. This case saw Trump, who has held both the 45th and 47th presidential positions, being convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records.
Colangelo joined the Manhattan District Attorney’s office in December 2022 after stepping down as principal deputy attorney general. Before that, he held the position of acting deputy attorney general, which is effectively the third-highest role in the Justice Department under Biden.
Though he attempted to distance himself from Trump-related activities during his time in the Justice Department, records obtained by conservative watchdog America First Legal suggest otherwise. Calendar entries indicate he attended significant meetings about various issues concerning past and future presidents.
Notably, at least three of these meetings were tied to a conflict regarding national security records at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, which led to his indictment by special counsel Jack Smith.
Additionally, Colangelo was part of a December 2021 meeting that discussed the Department of Justice’s stance on columnist E. Jean Carroll’s advice regarding her civil suit against Trump, related to allegations of sexual abuse and defamation.
Another twelve entries on Colangelo’s calendar were about a meeting involving a subpoena for Trump’s former general counsel, Don McGahn, to discuss obstruction of justice findings in former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into possible Russian collusion with Trump’s 2016 campaign.
Will Scolinos from America First Legal stated, “These records reveal that the individual responsible for prosecuting President Trump in Manhattan was more involved in Trump-related cases at the Justice Department than the public has been led to believe.” He added, “It raises questions about what else the public might have been misinformed about.”
Additionally, it was reported that the Democratic National Committee made a payment of $12,000 to Colangelo for “political consulting” back in January 2018. He also donated $400 to Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign, as per Federal Election Commission documents.
Trump’s conviction in May 2024 marked a historic moment, as it was the first time a former U.S. president faced criminal charges. However, Judge Juan Marchan ultimately imposed a no-prison sentence, eliminating any jail time or fines just ten days before Trump’s second inauguration.
When queried about Colangelo’s transition to the Manhattan district attorney’s office, then-Attorney General Merrick Garland reported under oath, “Mr. Colangelo had nothing to do with it,” adding that he merely applied for the position.
Moving forward, Bragg’s team has indicated that Colangelo will focus on housing and tenant protections, labor rights, and high-profile white-collar investigations within the department. The newspaper has reached out to Bragg’s office for further comments.
