WASHINGTON – Republican lawmakers on Thursday launched an investigation into Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney Fannie Willis, as former President Donald Trump prepares to appear before authorities on criminal charges she has brought over his efforts to overturn his election loss. of 2020.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, a staunch ally of Mr. Trump, sent a letter to Attorney General Willis questioning whether she coordinated her investigation with the U.S. Department of Justice, including Special Counsel Jack Smith, or whether it used federal tax-collected funds for its investigation.
“The federal government has a significant interest in the welfare of former presidents,” Legislator Jordan wrote in a five-page letter to Attorney Willis.
“And because this former president is currently a candidate for the same post, the investigative process also involves another fundamental federal interest: the presidential election,” he writes.
Legislator Jordan raises concerns about the prosecutor’s motives for starting this investigative case and states that Congress has the authority “to investigate whether former presidents have been the subject of politically motivated investigative processes.” In his letter, Legislator Jordan also signals that lawmakers may consider new legislation on the future use of federal funds by local law enforcement agencies in US states.
District Attorney Willis’ office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Republicans have a narrow majority in the House of Representatives. Legislator Jordan and the chairs of two other House committees have launched a similar investigation into Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought criminal charges against former President Trump in connection with hush money payments. of a pornographic actress on the eve of the 2016 election. In response, Attorney Bragg filed suit against Legislator Jordan to stop what the prosecutor calls a “campaign of intimidation.”
Former President Trump faces criminal charges this year in four court cases, two of them opened by Attorney Smith. Mr Trump, the first former US president to face charges, is the front-runner in the race within the Republican Party to face Democratic President Joe Biden in the 2024 presidential election.
Legislator Jordan gave Attorney Willis until September 7 to produce documents and communications related to her office’s use of federal funds, as well as contacts related to the case against former President Trump with Justice Department officials. or in other parts of President Biden’s administration.
The House investigation was announced three days after former President Trump accused Attorney Willis on his social media platform of “continuing the campaign, and raising funds for this WITCH HUNT. This is in close coordination with Joe Biden’s Department of Justice. Everything is aimed at INTERFERING IN THE ELECTION!”.
The House Judiciary Committee released Lawmaker Jordan’s letter as former President Trump prepared to be fingerprinted and photographed Thursday in an Atlanta jail on 13 criminal charges, including one count of wire fraud. usually against organized criminal groups.
According to the filing filed by Attorney Willis, former President Trump is accused of illegally pressuring Georgia state officials to overturn his loss to President Biden in the 2020 election.
The former president, now at the age of 77, faces 91 criminal charges in various courts around the country. He has denied having committed any offense.