By Associated Press’s Michael R. Sisak
NEW YORK (AP) Four days after beginning his mortgage fraud probe of New York Attorney General Letitia James, the political weaponization czar for President Donald Trump wrote a letter pushing her to step down as a gesture of good faith. He then appeared outside her home.
On August 12, James’ attorney was informed by Ed Martin, the director of the Justice Department’s Weaponization Working Group, that the Democrat would benefit the state and the country most if he resigned and closed his investigation into purported paperwork inconsistencies between her Brooklyn townhouse and a Virginia residence.
Martin argued that the people of America and New York would be more at peace if she resigned from office rather than continuing. This seems like an act of good faith to me.
Then, last Friday, Martin appeared outside James’ Brooklyn townhouse with a New York Post reporter and an aide, wearing a trench coat reminiscent of Columbo. He didn’t enter the building or meet with James. He told a neighbor, as reported by a Post writer: I’m simply looking at properties, intriguing houses. It is a significant home.
Abbe Lowell, James’ attorney, retaliated on Monday, writing that Martin’s direct request for James’ resignation violated the Justice Department’s professional duty and ethical standards.
According to Lowell, the Justice Department has strict guidelines prohibiting the use of investigations and prosecutorial authority for political purposes. This is especially true if the demand is to exact political retribution on a public figure from the other party.
To be clear, it won’t occur here, Lowell continued.
Martin’s visit to James’ house was also denounced by Lowell as a genuinely strange, media-driven gimmick that violated Justice Department regulations. He featured a picture from security camera footage of Martin posing for a picture in front of James’ townhouse while wearing a trench coat. According to him, Martin appeared to be visiting a tourist destination.
Copies of both letters were obtained by the Associated Press on Tuesday. Martin’s spokeswoman received a mail asking for comment. James’ office chose not to respond.
The letters were the most recent shots in a months-long drama about Trump’s strategy of retaliation against James and other people who have opposed his policies and challenged him in court.
James has filed numerous lawsuits against the Republican president and his administration. Last year, he obtained a $454 million judgment against Trump and his businesses, claiming that he misrepresented the worth of his assets on bank-provided financial statements. Trump’s attempt to have that decision overturned has not yet been decided by an appeals court.
According to the AP, the Justice Department subpoenaed James earlier this month for documents pertaining to her lawsuit against the National Rifle Association and the civil fraud case.
In April, Attorney General Pam Bondi received a letter from William Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, requesting that she look into and perhaps prosecute James for allegedly falsifying property records and bank paperwork. This letter is the basis for Martin’s inquiry.
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According to media reports, James had wrongly claimed a house in Virginia as her primary address. Pulte, whose agency oversees mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, speculated that she might have been attempting to avoid the higher interest rates that are frequently associated with second residences.
James was identified as a co-borrower on a home her niece was purchasing in 2023, according to the records. Records and letters, according to Lowell, readily refuted Pulte’s accusation.
She wrote an email to her mortgage loan broker at about the same time that made it plain that the home WILL NOT be my primary residence, even though James signed a power-of-attorney document that, according to Lowell, incorrectly identified the property as Ms. James’ principal residence.
James was also charged by Pulte with falsifying the number of apartments in the Brooklyn home she has owned since 2001 in property documents.
In the building where James resides and has rented out apartments, a previous owner’s certificate of occupancy permitted up to five units. According to additional city records, the townhouse contains four units, as James has stated in his mortgage and building permission applications.
Bondi assigned Martin, a former Republican political operative, to conduct the investigation on August 8. Martin, a former interim U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C., and now the U.S. pardon attorney, is also looking into claims of mortgage fraud against Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. Schiff’s attorney described the claims as blatantly untrue, outdated, and extensively refuted.
According to Lowell, the working group that Martin leads seems to be appropriately called as it is using the Justice Department as a weapon to carry out the threats made by the President and the Attorney General.
