Jim Jordan Taking Fight Over Trump Into Alvin Bragg's Backyard

House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan is escalating his legal threats against Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg with a "field hearing" next week, mere blocks from Bragg's offices.

Bragg last week brought 34 felony charges of falsifying business records against Donald Trump in the first criminal indictment of a former president in United States history. The charges stem from allegations that Trump unlawfully attempted to conceal a "hush money" payment made by his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to keep adult film star Stormy Daniels quiet about an affair she allegedly had with Trump in 2006.

Trump has strenuously denied the affair and dismissed the legitimacy of the case despite Cohen previously pleading guilty and served time in prison as a result of his involvement. Numerous Republicans have adopted Trump's rhetoric and spoken out against the Manhattan case, decrying it as a politically motivated attempt to target him.

Among those lawmakers is Ohio Republican Jim Jordan, who has pledged to use his position as chair of the House Judiciary Committee to investigate Bragg and his case against Trump. The committee announced Monday that it would hold a field hearing in Manhattan on the morning of April 17 at the Jacob Javits Federal Building, a few blocks from Bragg's office and from the courthouse where Trump was arraigned last week.

The hearing will purportedly involve testimony "from victims of Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg's radical policies." The committee was "not immediately able" to share a list of the witnesses, but claimed that they have been affected by Bragg's alleged "failure to prosecute" more typical crimes, which Republicans have long accused him of.

In response to a request for comment, Bragg's press office referred Newsweek to an official statement, dismissing the hearing as a "political stunt" and citing decreases in key crime rates the city has recently seen.

Jordan's attempted oversight crusade against Bragg has drawn skepticism and outright dismissal from legal experts, many of whom have doubted that the congressman has ground to stand on.

Former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner went a step further earlier last week, arguing that Jordan's actions broke the New York state law against "obstructing governmental administration," which concerns efforts to "intentionally [prevent] a public servant from performing an official function by means of intimidation, physical force or interference."

"That is precisely what Jim Jordan has done and is doing," Kirschner argued. "And that's precisely what district attorney Alvin Bragg put Jim Jordan on notice of."

In a statement sent to Newsweek, former federal prosecutor Franklin Monsour also likened Jordan's recent moves to a "political stunt" and questioned their potential legal efficacy.

"The committee's work is supposed to be related to legislation. It is unclear what legislation any of this is connected to," Monsour wrote. "It is also highly unlikely that any judge would enforce a committee subpoena against a prosecutor or anyone else regarding an indicted criminal case—which is already before a judge. Given that reality, the latest move—apparently to hold a hearing on NY crime—seems to fully concede that this is a political stunt."

In an earlier statement released by his office, Bragg pushed back against Jordan's efforts, calling them "an unprecedented campaign of harassment and intimidation" and "an abuse of power." The district attorney has not, however, announced any plans to pursue legal actions against Jordan or others.

Updated, 04/10/2023, 6:34 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Franklin Monsour and Bragg's office.