Letitia James

Nov. 6 (UPI) — The Trump administration has one day to fully distribute Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for November, a federal judge ruled on Thursday.

U.S. District Court of Rhode Island Judge Jack McConnell ordered the program funding after earlier requiring the Trump administration to access available money to at least partially fund SNAP benefits amid the federal government shutdown.

McConnell required the Trump administration to apprise the court on Wednesday of efforts to fund the program formerly known as “food stamps.”

“People have gone without for too long,” McConnell said during an emergency hearing on Thursday, as reported by CNN.

“Not making payments to them for even another day is simply unacceptable,” he added.

He said the Trump administration has not done enough to access an estimated $4.65 billion in contingency funds to partially fund the SNAP benefits that cost about $9 billion per month to help 42 million recipients put food on their tables.

If SNAP is not funded fully, “people will go hungry, food pantries will be overburdened, and needless suffering will occur,” McConnell said on Thursday, according to CNBC.

“That’s what irreparable harm here means,” he continued. “Last weekend, SNAP benefits lapsed for the first time in our nation’s history.”

He called it a “problem that could have and should have been avoided.”

McConnell ordered the Trump administration to provide the full amount of November SNAP benefits to respective states by Friday, which would enable them to distribute benefits to their residents within a few days.

The federal judge also referenced a Truth Social post made by President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

In that post, the president said SNAP benefits only would be funded “when the radical-left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before.”

The social media post served as evidence that the Trump administration would ignore McConnell’s prior order requiring it to access as much funding as possible to distribute SNAP benefits.

He criticized the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s decision not to access contingency funds to continue SNAP benefits instead of allowing them to be suspended as of Saturday.

“Even when Nov. 1 came, [the] USDA refused to use the congressionally mandated contingency funds,” McConnell said.

“USDA cannot now cry that it cannot get timely payments to the beneficiary for weeks or months because states are not prepared to make partial payments.”

McConnell is presiding over one of two federal cases filed by up to 25 states seeking to continue federal funding of SNAP benefits despite the record 37-day federal government shutdown that started on Oct. 1.

New York is party to both suits, and state Attorney General Letitia James welcomed McConnell’s ruling on Thursday.

“A judge in Rhode Island just stopped the federal government from starving millions of Americans,” James said in a prepared statement.

“I am relieved that people will get the food they need,” she added, “but it is outrageous that it took a lawsuit to make the federal government feed its own people.”

Oct. 28 (UPI) — With the impending loss of benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program potentially causing low-income Americans and their families to go hungry, 25 states have filed suit to force the federal government to release funds for the program during the federal government shutdown.

Starting Saturday, SNAP benefits will not be distributed. The program gives food aid to 40 million Americans.

In past government shutdowns, the USDA used a contingency fund to pay out SNAP benefits. Last week, the President Donald Trump administration said it won’t be using contingency funds to pay for SNAP.

“We just can’t do it without the government being open,” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said on Oct. 21. “By Nov. 1, we are very hopeful this government reopens and we can begin moving that money out. But right now, half the states are shut down on SNAP.”

The lawsuit said this has never happened before.

“Because of USDA’s actions, SNAP benefits will be delayed for the first time since the program’s inception. … Suspending SNAP benefits in these circumstances is both contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act,” the lawsuit said.

New York Attorney General Letitia James released a statement on the suit:

“Millions of Americans are about to go hungry because the federal government has chosen to withhold food assistance it is legally obligated to provide,” James said.

“SNAP is one of our nation’s most effective tools to fight hunger, and the USDA has the money to keep it running. There is no excuse for this administration to abandon families who rely on SNAP, or food stamps, as a lifeline. The federal government must do its job to protect families.”

On Fox News, Rollins was asked if the Agriculture well had truly run dry, CNBC reported.

“100% unequivocally, USDA does not have the $9.2 billion that it would require,” Rollins said.

“There’s not just pots of $9.2 billion sitting around. And what’s particularly rich about New York saying that, or California, or any of these other blue states that have filed the lawsuit to say, ‘Oh no, we’re going to go, you guys, USDA, go find the money,'” Rollins said.

The lawsuit alleges that the USDA has the money and won’t spend it. The plaintiffs are led by the attorneys general of Massachusetts, California, Arizona and Minnesota. The states and the District of Columbia asked a judge to reply quickly to force the USDA to use the contingency funds for November.

On Tuesday, another Senate vote to reopen the government failed.

Oct. 24 (UPI) — New York Attorney General Letitia James will be arraigned Friday for her charges of lying on a mortgage application, a prosecution pushed by President Donald Trump.

James’ arraignment will be in Norfolk, Va., in the first court appearance since her indictment on Oct. 9. A grand jury in the U.S.District Court of Eastern Virginia indicted James on the criminal charges after the Justice Department alleged she falsely claimed a Norfolk, Va., property that she bought in 2020 would be her primary residence to get better mortgage terms.

James is expected to plead not guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of making a false statement to a financial institution.

The indictment came a few weeks after Trump posted on Truth Social that Attorney General Pam Bondi should prosecute James, former FBI director James Comey and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. Bondi also recently indicted former national security advisor John Bolton.

James is accused of lying about the purpose of a house purchase in Norfolk in 2020. She said on the mortgage application that it would be her primary home, but instead made it a rental. She allegedly rented it to a family of three. But her great-niece has lived in the home since 2020 and testified to a grand jury that she has never paid rent. James has only reported $1,350 in rent on her taxes.

Career federal prosecutors decided against prosecuting James, but Trump forced out Erik Siebert, the U.S. attorney overseeing the office, and replaced him with Lindsey Halligan, a White House aide. Halligan brought the case against James and got the indictment.

Trump dislikes James because she filed a civil fraud lawsuit in 2022, accusing Trump of giving false property valuations and estimates of Trump’s net worth in order to get beneficial loan rates and insurance deals he wouldn’t otherwise have gotten. Trump lost the case and was ordered to pay $364 million. A judge later overturned the fine for being excessive.

Halligan made headlines on Tuesday for her messages to a reporter who wrote an article about the case in the New York Times. Halligan allegedly harassed reporter Anna Bower on Signal for 33 hours.

James’ attorney, Abbe Lowell, asked the court to intervene and warn Halligan about making extra-judicial comments about the case.

“These extrajudicial statements and prejudicial disclosures by any prosecutor, let alone one purporting to be the U.S. attorney, run afoul of and violate the federal rules of criminal procedure, the code of federal regulations, this court’s local rules, various rules of ethical and professional responsibility and [Department of Justice’s] justice manual,” Lowell wrote in a filing, The Times reported. He wanted the judge to warn Halligan “to prevent any further disclosures by government attorneys and agents of investigative and case materials, and statements to the media and public.”

Oct. 11 (UPI) — Former National Security adviser John Bolton might be charged with federal crimes next week for allegedly mishandling classified documents.

Federal prosecutors met on Saturday to weigh potential charges that would be filed in the U.S. District Court for Maryland, which is Bolton’s state of residence, according to CNN.

Bolton served as President Donald Trump‘s National Security adviser from April 9, 2018, to Sept. 10, 2019.

He has been under investigation for several years due to how he handled classified information, and Saturday’s meeting of federal prosecutors is to determine potential charges.

Bolton’s attorney Abbe Lowell dismissed claims that Bolton inappropriately handled classified documents, NBC News reported.

“An objective and thorough review will show nothing inappropriate was stored or kept by Amb. Bolton,” Lowell said in a prepared statement and referring to Bolton’s former position as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

She said the files in Bolton’s possession had been reviewed and closed, and he intended to use them while writing a book.

“These are the kinds of ordinary records, many of which are 20 years old or more, that would be kept by a longtime career official who served at the State Department, as an assistant attorney general, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and the National Security adviser,” Lowell said.

FBI agents in August searched Bolton’s home and his office in Washington as part of a national security investigation regarding classified documents.

Federal prosecutors are determining how they might pursue a federal grand jury indictment against him.

A grand jury indictment against Bolton would be the third secured by interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, whom Trump recently appointed after firing her predecessor for not pursuing such indictments.

Halligan recently obtained federal grand jury indictments against former FBI Director James Comey for allegedly lying to Congress in 2020.

Earlier this week, she also obtained a grand jury indictment against New York Attorney General Letitia James for alleged bank fraud related to the purchase of a home in Alexandria, Va.

Oct. 7 (UPI) — Attorney General Pam Bondi testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday, and refused to answer questions on several topics.

Bondi declined to answer questions about the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey regarding her discussions with President Donald Trump as well as the firings of Department of Justice attorneys who worked on Jan. 6 cases and her refusal to prosecute certain cases of Trump’s allies.

Bondi also avoided questions about the files of convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and Trump’s alleged friendship with him. She responded that the Democrats should explain their own relationships with him, CNN reported.

Sen Richard Blumenthal, D-N.Y., said Bondi’s testimony was a new low for attorneys general.

“Her apparent strategy is to attack and conceal. Frankly, I’ve been through close to 15 of these attorney general accountability hearings, and I have never seen anything close to it in terms of the combativeness, the evasiveness and sometimes deceptiveness,” Blumenthal told reporters after leaving the hearing. “I think it is possibly a new low for attorneys general testifying before the United States Congress, and I just hope my Republican colleagues will demand more accountability than what we have seen so far.”

Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., agreed with Blumenthal.

“She was fully prepared for, with specific and personal comebacks, accusing various of my colleagues, of challenging their integrity or challenging their basis for their questions in a way I’ve not ever seen,” Coons said.

The White House has already praised Bondi’s performance.

“She’s doing great,” a White House official told CNN. “Not only is the AG debunking every single bogus Democrat talking point, but she’s highlighting the Democrats’ own hypocrisy and they have no response.”

Bondi, along with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, criticized the judge in the case of Sophie Roske, the woman who planned an attack on Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Roske, who called the police on herself before making contact with Kavanaugh, was sentenced to eight years in prison for the plot.

“My prosecutors did an incredible job on that case,” Bondi said. She said the Justice Department would appeal the sentence, which was 22 years below the federal guidelines and the minimum sentence prosecutors wanted. “The judge also would not refer to the defendant by his biological name,” Bondi said. Roske is transgender.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., asked Bondi what conversations she has had with the White House about investigations into Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Comey. Bondi again declined to answer.

“I’m not going to discuss any conversations,” Bondi said to Klobuchar, CBS News reported.

Klobuchar asked her about a Truth Social post by Trump last in which he asked Bondi why she hadn’t brought charges against Comey, Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

“President Trump is the most transparent president in American history, and I don’t think he said anything that he hasn’t said for years,” Bondi said.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., pressed her on whether the FBI found any pictures of Trump “with half-naked young women,” saying that Epstein was reported to have shown them around.

“You know, Sen. Whitehouse? You sit here and make salacious remarks, once again, trying to slander President Trump, left and right, when you’re the one who was taking money from one of Epstein’s closest confidants,” Bondi responded, referring to tech entrepreneur and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, who has said he regretted his contacts with Epstein, CBS reported.

Since Bondi took over at the Justice Department, she and her team have fired prosecutors who worked on capitol riot cases and pushed out career FBI agents.

The Public Integrity Section is nearly empty now, and more than 70% of the lawyers in the Civil Rights Division are also gone, NPR reported.

In a letter Monday, nearly 300 former Justice Department employees asked the Oversight Committee to closely monitor the department.

“We call on Congress to exercise its oversight responsibilities far more vigorously. Members in both chambers and on both sides of the aisle must provide a meaningful check on the abuses we’re witnessing,” the letter said.

The letter also alleged poor treatment of staff.

“As for its treatment of its employees, the current leadership’s behavior has been appalling. … And demonizing, firing, demoting, involuntarily transferring, and directing employees to violate their ethical duties has already caused an exodus of over 5,000 of us — draining the Department of priceless institutional knowledge and expertise, and impairing its historical success in recruiting top talent. We may feel the effects of this for generations.”

Bondi said the DOJ stands by the “many terminations” in the department since Trump took office. “We stand by all of those,” she said.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said in an opening statement, “What has taken place since Jan. 20, 2025, would make even President Nixon recoil.”

Durbin said Bondi has left “an enormous stain in American history.”

“It will take decades to recover,” he said.

The hearing is just two weeks after she sought and secured an indictment of Comey at the direction of the president. Democrats have said she’s weaponizing the Department of Justice, breaking with the longstanding tradition of keeping the department independent of political goals.

Comey was indicted on one count each of lying to Congress and obstructing justice for his testimony before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee in September 2020. Before the indictment, U.S. Attorney Erik Siebert refused to indict because of a lack of evidence against Comey. Trump accused him of waiting too long to indict and nearly allowing the statute of limitations to run out. Siebert resigned under pressure from the administration.

Last week, Durbin said the targeting of Trump’s political enemies is “a code-red alarm for the rule of law” in a floor speech, The Washington Post reported.

“Never in the history of our country has a president so brazenly demanded the baseless prosecution of his rivals,” he said. “And he doesn’t even try to hide it.”

But Republicans claim that Bondi’s leadership is necessary after years of what they say was politicized attacks from the Justice Department under the President Joe Biden administration.

“If the facts and the evidence support the finding that Comey lied to Congress and obstructed our work, he ought to be held accountable,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chair of the Judiciary Committee.

During her confirmation hearing, Bondi vowed that weaponization of the Justice Department is over.

“I will not politicize that office,” Bondi said at the time. “I will not target people simply because of their political affiliation.”

Sept. 26 (UPI) — After the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, President Donald Trump said that more indictments are coming.

As he left the White House to head to the Ryder Cup in New York, he was asked by reporters who would be next on his list.

“It’s not a list, but I think there will be others. They’re corrupt. These were corrupt, radical-left Democrats,” The Hill reported Trump said.

“They weaponized the Justice Department like nobody in history. What they’ve done is terrible. And so I hope — frankly, I hope there are others. Because you can’t let this happen to a country.”

Trump added that the Comey indictment wasn’t about revenge.

“It’s about justice. … It’s also about the fact that you can’t let this go on. They are sick, radical-left people, and they can’t get away with it,” Trump said. “And Comey was one of the people. He wasn’t the biggest. But he was a dirty cop.”

A U.S. District Court of Eastern Virginia grand jury indicted Comey on Thursday with one count each of making a false statement and obstruction. The indictment was based on oral testimony before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee in September 2020.

The indictment did not elaborate, but the charges seem to stem from when Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, asked Comey if he had allowed his deputy to speak with a reporter about an investigation into Trump.

Comey told Cruz that he didn’t.

Comey, a Republican, said after the indictment that he understood there was a price for standing up to Trump.

“We will not live on our knees,” he said. “And you shouldn’t either.”

Besides Comey, some people Trump has mentioned who should be prosecuted are New York Attorney General Letitia James, U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff and former President Barack Obama.

Sept. 24 (UPI) — Former FBI Director James Comey is likely to be indicted soon on criminal charges in the U.S. District Court for Eastern Virginia, several media outlets reported on Wednesday.

Three unnamed sources said Comey will be indicted in the coming days on to-be-determined charges for allegedly lying to Congress in 2020, according to MSNBC, The Independent and CNBC.

Evidence suggests Comey lied to Congress while testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 30, 2020, regarding the FBI’s Crossfire Hurricane investigation into alleged Russian collusion with President Donald Trump‘s successful election campaign in 2016, MSNBC reported.

Federal law has a five-year statute of limitations on charges for lying to Congress while under oath, which would require charges to be filed against Comey no later than Tuesday.

The president urged Attorney General Pam Bondi to accelerate charges against Comey, Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and New York Attorney General Letitia James in a social media post on Saturday.

“They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done,” Trump said on Truth Social.

He accused two unnamed Democratic Party senators of pushing a “woke RINO” to become the district’s federal prosecutor for Eastern Virginia so that he could stonewall the investigation until the statute of limitations expires.

RINO is an acronym for Republican in name only.

Interim U.S. Attorney for Eastern Virginia Lindsey Halligan is expected to lead the pending prosecution, but U.S. attorneys from other districts also might participate.

If charged and convicted for allegedly lying to Congress while under oath, Comey could be sentenced to up to five years in prison and fined.

Former President Barack Obama nominated Comey as FBI director, a role that he held from Sept. 4, 2013, until Trump fired him on May 9, 2017.

Sept. 20 (UPI) — Replacements have been named for the acting U.S. attorney and nominee for the Eastern District of Virginia who was forced out after failing to bring criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James regarding mortgage loan fraud.

Erik Siebert notified staff on Friday that he resigned, but President Donald Trump said he was fired. Siebert was nominated for the position and was awaiting Senate confirmation.

Trump posted on Truth Social he plans to nominate Lindsey Halligan, who “proved herself to be a tremendous trial lawyer, and later represented me (and WON!) in the disgraceful Democrat Documents Hoax, as well as MANY other major, high profile cases.” He was referring to his handling of classified material after leaving office following his first term.

Halligan, who is currently a special assistant in the White House, does not have any prosecutorial experience and her law license is in Florida, ABC News reported.

“Lindsey is a tough, smart, and loyal attorney, who has worked with me for a long time,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday night. “As a Partner at the biggest Law Firm in Florida, Lindsey proved herself to be a tremendous trial lawyer.”

Earlier Saturday, Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Mary “Maggie” Cleary, an attorney active in Republican politics, as acting U.S. attorney for the division, according an internal email obtained by Politico and The Washington Post.

This month, Cleary rejoined the DOJ as a senior counsel in the criminal division in the District of Columbia after working in the Culpepper Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office and Virginia state agencies.

She was placed on administrative leave in the DOJ’s Virginia Western District for being on Capitol grounds during the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Clear said she was “framed” and was ultimately cleared.

Cleary will serve until a nominee is confirmed.

“This evening, I submitted my resignation as interim US Attorney for EDVA,” Siebert’s email, obtained by ABC News, read. “For the last eight months, I have had the pleasure of leading the finest and most exceptional of DOJ employees, who care deeply about our nation and our EDVA community. Thank you for the lessons you have taught me, the sacrifices you have made, and the pursuit of justice you strive for every day.”

On Saturday, Trump posted on X that he “withdrew the Nomination of Erik Siebert as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, when I was informed that he received the UNUSUALLY STRONG support of the two absolutely terrible, sleazebag Democrat Senators, from the Great State of Virginia. He didn’t quit, I fired him! Next time let him go in as a Democrat, not a Republican.”

He was referring to Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner.

In a joint statement, Kaine and Warner said Siebert lost his job because his office was “unable to find incriminating evidence of mortgage fraud” against James, noting that there had been bipartisan support for his nomination.

“In April, after an extensive interview process that included the input of a bipartisan panel of former Virginia U.S. attorneys and other well-respected members of the Virginia legal community, Warner and Kaine sent a letter to the White House recommending Siebert for the U.S. attorney position,” they wrote. “In May, the White House announced that Siebert was formally nominated for the role,” Warner and Kaine said.

Both senators from a nominee’s state are sent a blue slip in which they may submit a favorable or unfavorable opinion of a nominee, regardless of their party. The Senate Judiciary Committee takes blue slips into consideration when deciding whether to recommend that the Senate confirm a nominee.

Media outlets, including CNN and The New York Times, reported that Justice Department prosecutors in Virginia believed they have not gathered enough evidence to indict James.

“Erik Siebert is an ethical prosecutor who refused to bring criminal charges against Trump’s perceived enemies when the facts wouldn’t support it,” the senators wrote. “The Eastern District of Virginia is at the forefront of significant cases essential to our national security, and just like any court in America, should be focused on justice instead of a thin-skinned president’s vendettas.”

Siebert, who worked for 15 years in Virginia as an assistant U.S. attorney, was the lead attorney for the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force and the deputy criminal supervisor for the Richmond Division.

He was also a police officer with the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C.

In March, he appeared with Attorney General Pam Bondi, Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and FBI Director Kash Patel on the arrest of an alleged MS-13 gang member in Northern Virginia.

Before posting on Truth Social, Trump told reporters, “Yeah, I want him out. When I learned that they voted for him, I said, I don’t really want him.”

New York’s attorney general is among three people targeted by the Trump administration for alleged loan fraud involving claims about two primary residences in Virginia and New York. No Republicans have been named, though Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin have two primary residences on loan paper, ProPublica reported.

William Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, wrote a letter to Bondi alleging that James had “in multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records to acquire government-backed assistance and loans and more favorable loan terms.” The letter was obtained by CBS News.

“The allegations are baseless,” James told NY1, “The allegations are nothing more than a revenge tour.”

James has been in Trump’s crosshairs since June 2022, when she sued Trump and the Trump Organization, alleging they inflated the values of properties.

Trump was ordered to pay $355 million in restitution for “ill-gotten gains” from his inflated financial statements, state Superior Court Judge Arthur Engoron ruled. With interest, the amount was raised to $527 earlier this year. But the Appellare Division in New York earlier this year canceled the fine and James has appealed.

Pulte has also targeted California Sen. Adam Schiff, a Democrat, and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, appointed by President Joe Biden. Trump fired Cook, but the district and appeals courts have ruled that Trump doesn’t have the authority to fire someone from the Federal Reserve without due process and only for cause. Trump has asked the Supreme Court to weigh in.

Sept. 20 (UPI) — The acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia was forced out after failing to bring criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James regarding mortgage loan fraud.

Erik Siebert notified staff on Friday that he resigned, but President Donald Trump said he was fired. Siebert was nominated for the position and was awaiting Senate confirmation.

On Saturday, Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Mary “Maggie” Cleary, an attorney active in Republican politics, as acting U.S. attorney for the division, according an internal email obtained by Politico and The Washington Post.

This month, Cleary rejoined the DOJ as a senior counsel in the criminal division in the District of Columbia after working in the Culpepper Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office and Virginia state agencies.

She was placed on administrative leave in the DOJ’s Virginia Western District for being on Capitol grounds during the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Clear said she was “framed” and was ultimately cleared.

“This evening, I submitted my resignation as interim US Attorney for EDVA,” Siebert’s email, obtained by ABC News, read. “For the last eight months, I have had the pleasure of leading the finest and most exceptional of DOJ employees, who care deeply about our nation and our EDVA community. Thank you for the lessons you have taught me, the sacrifices you have made, and the pursuit of justice you strive for every day.”

On Saturday, Trump posted on X that he “withdrew the Nomination of Erik Siebert as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, when I was informed that he received the UNUSUALLY STRONG support of the two absolutely terrible, sleazebag Democrat Senators, from the Great State of Virginia. He didn’t quit, I fired him! Next time let him go in as a Democrat, not a Republican.”

He was referring to Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner.

In a joint statement, Kaine and Warner said Siebert lost his job because his office was “unable to find incriminating evidence of mortgage fraud” against James, noting that there had been bipartisan support for his nomination.

“In April, after an extensive interview process that included the input of a bipartisan panel of former Virginia U.S. attorneys and other well-respected members of the Virginia legal community, Warner and Kaine sent a letter to the White House recommending Siebert for the U.S. attorney position,” they wrote. “In May, the White House announced that Siebert was formally nominated for the role,” Warner and Kaine said.

Both senators from a nominee’s state are sent a blue slip in which they may submit a favorable or unfavorable opinion of a nominee, regardless of their party. The Senate Judiciary Committee takes blue slips into consideration when deciding whether to recommend that the Senate confirm a nominee.

Media outlets, including CNN and The New York Times, reported that Justice Department prosecutors in Virginia believed they have not gathered enough evidence to indict James.

“Erik Siebert is an ethical prosecutor who refused to bring criminal charges against Trump’s perceived enemies when the facts wouldn’t support it,” the senators wrote. “The Eastern District of Virginia is at the forefront of significant cases essential to our national security, and just like any court in America, should be focused on justice instead of a thin-skinned president’s vendettas.”

Siebert, who worked for 15 years in Virginia as an assistant U.S. attorney, was the lead attorney for the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force and the deputy criminal supervisor for the Richmond Division.

He was also a police officer with the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C.

In March, he appeared with Attorney General Pam Bondi, Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and FBI Director Kash Patel on the arrest of an alleged MS-13 gang member in Northern Virginia.

Before posting on Truth Social, Trump told reporters, “Yeah, I want him out. When I learned that they voted for him, I said, I don’t really want him.”

New York’s attorney general is among three people targeted by the Trump administration for alleged loan fraud involving claims about two primary residences in Virginia and New York. No Republicans have been named, though Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin have two primary residences on loan paper, ProPublica reported.

William Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, wrote a letter to Bondi alleging that James had “in multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records to acquire government-backed assistance and loans and more favorable loan terms.” The letter was obtained by CBS News.

“The allegations are baseless,” James told NY1, “The allegations are nothing more than a revenge tour.”

James has been in Trump’s crosshairs since June 2022, when she sued Trump and the Trump Organization, alleging they inflated the values of properties.

Trump was ordered to pay $355 million in restitution for “ill-gotten gains” from his inflated financial statements, state Superior Court Judge Arthur Engoron ruled. With interest, the amount was raised to $527 earlier this year. But the Appellare Division in New York earlier this year canceled the fine and James has appealed.

Pulte has also targeted California Sen. Adam Schiff, a Democrat, and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, appointed by President Joe Biden. Trump fired Cook, but the district and appeals courts have ruled that Trump doesn’t have the authority to fire someone from the Federal Reserve without due process and only for cause. Trump has asked the Supreme Court to weigh in.

Aug. 28 (UPI) — The Trump administration Thursday night announced a second criminal referral against Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook for mortgage fraud, as she sues President Donald Trump for attempting to illegally dismiss her.

William Pulte, the agency’s director, announced the second referral on X, stating “3 strikes and you’re out.”

“Lisa Cook needs to step aside — with the evidence coming out on her 3rd mortgage and her alleged misrepresentations to the Federal Government ethics department, I believe she is causing irreparable harm to our beloved Federal Reserve,” Pulte said in a second statement. “How is Jay Powell fine with her behavior?”

Pulte had sent the first criminal referral to Attorney General Pam Bondi on Aug. 26, accusing Cook, the first Black woman to sit on the independent board, of falsifying documents and committing mortgage, bank and wire fraud. She is accused of signing two separate mortgage documents for two separate properties that claim each is her primary residence. One property is in Michigan and the other is in Atlanta. The two documents were allegedly signed two weeks apart during the summer of 2021.

The new referral is about a third property in Cambridge, Mass.

Pulte states Cook misrepresented the property by calling it her “second home” on a 15-year mortgage document in December 2021, and then listing it on a U.S. ethics form as an “investment/rental property” weeks later.

Trump moved to fire Cook on Monday, after calling for her to resign, citing the first criminal referral as reason for the dismissal, the legality of which was unclear and has prompted staunch opposition from Democrats.

The second referral was announced hours after Cook sued Trump for attempting to fire her.

“This case challenges President Trump’s unprecedented and illegal attempt to remove Governor Cook from her position, which, if allowed to occur, would be the first of its kind in the Board’s history,” the suit said.

“It would subvert the Federal Reserve Act, which explicitly requires a showing of ’cause’ for a Governor’s removal, which an unsubstantiated allegation about private mortgage applications submitted by Governor Cook prior to her Senate confirmation is not,” the case introduction continued.

“The President’s actions violate Governor Cook’s Fifth Amendment due process rights and her statutory right to notice and a hearing under the [Federal Reserve Act],” it further stated. “Accordingly, Governor Cook seeks immediate declaratory and injunctive relief to confirm her status as a member of the Board of Governors, safeguard her and the Board’s congressionally mandated independence, and allow Governor Cook and the Federal Reserve to continue its critical work.”

The suit names Trump, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and the Fed Board of Governors as defendants, and a hearing for a request for a temporary restraining order has been slated for 10 a.m. EDT on Friday in front of Federal Judge Jia Cobb.

Should she win the case, her lawyers ask for Trump to declare she remains an active Fed governor, and that board members can only be removed for cause, as described in the Federal Reserve Act, the law under which Trump is attempting to fire her.

The suit also seeks “an award of the costs of this action and reasonable attorney fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act or any other applicable law,” as well as an “award of all other appropriate relief.”

Trump campaigned on retaliating against political opponents. Since returning to the White House in January, he has used his executive powers to strip lawyers and law firms that have represented or are connected to his rivals of security clearances.

Two other Democrats and Trump critics — New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff of California — have also been accused of mortgage fraud by the Trump administration.

Trump’s attempt to fire Cook follows months of the president applying political pressure on her boss, Powell, to lower interest rates. Despite the insults and demands from Trump, Powell has resisted, stating economic policy will not be determined by politics.

Democrats have accused Trump of perpetrating an illegal authoritarian power grab by firing Cook. On Thursday night, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, accused Trump of attempting to “turn the Federal Reserve into the ‘Central Bank of Trump.'”

“The Fed makes decisions based on economic data — not political pressure,” she said in a statement. “This move would undermine the world’s confidence in our economy and harm working people.

“And it is illegal.”

Aug. 27 (UPI) — President Donald Trump is asking a New York appeals court to throw out the remaining penalties imposed against him in his civil fraud case after the roughly $500 million fine was dismissed last week.

Trump’s defense filed the motion in a New York appeals court Tuesday asking it to remove a three-year ban placed on the president from holding corporate leadership positions in the state, and a three-year ban on him and his companies receiving bank loans, among other punitive actions.

Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron fined Trump $454 million in February 2024, after Trump was found liable for financial fraud by inflating his net worth to secure favorable loans.

Last week, a divided appeals court threw out the massive monetary penalty, calling it excessive, but let stand the judgment.

After his financial penalty was erased, Trump claimed “TOTAL VICTORY” online.

“I greatly respect the fact that the Court had the Courage to throw out this unlawful and disgraceful Decision that was Hurting Business all throughout New York State,” Trump said on his Truth Social media platform.

“It was a political Witch Hunt, in a business sense, the likes of which no one has ever seen before.”

New York State Attorney General Letitia James, who brought the case against Trump, said she will appeal to have the $500 million fine reinstated.

“It should not be lost to history: yet another court has ruled that the president violated the law, and that our case has merit,” she said Thursday in a statement.

WASHINGTON — Behind a White House effort to saddle President Trump’s political foes with accusations of mortgage fraud is a 37-year-old home construction executive with a deep partisan past.

Bill Pulte, a Florida native, rose in Trump’s orbit toward the end of his first term. After courting Trump for years on social media and through generous donations, he now runs the Federal Housing Finance Agency — a perch that has allowed him to target prominent figures who have crossed the president.

In the last five months, Pulte has referred three claims of mortgage fraud against Trump’s foes to the Justice Department, leveled against Letitia James, the attorney general of New York; Adam Schiff, the Democratic senator from California; and this week, Lisa Cook, a governor on the board of the Federal Reserve.

Each has denied wrongdoing. Trump announced on Monday night that he was moving to fire Cook.

It is an unusual role for a director of the FHFA, which regulates Fannie Mae — the nation’s largest company by assets — and Freddie Mac. The two mortgage financing organizations, which support nearly half of the U.S. residential mortgage market, were taken over by the FHFA during the 2008 economic crisis.

The grandson of one of Michigan’s wealthiest and most prolific homebuilders, Pulte made a name for himself on Twitter in 2019 with public cash giveaways to individuals in need. He dubbed himself the “inventor of Twitter philanthropy,” vowing to give two cars away in exchange for a Trump retweet that year, which he received. He subsequently built a following of over 3 million.

Records show Pulte donated substantially to Trump, the Republican National Committee and related super PACs leading up to the 2024 election.

Pulte’s letters to Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi have been tightly and cautiously written. But his social media posts, celebrating the targeted attacks, have not.

“Trump becomes the first president ever to remove a sitting Federal Reserve governor,” he wrote on X, between retweets of right-wing commentators praising the move. “Mortgage fraud can carry up to 30 years in prison.”

In another post on X, quoting a CNN headline, Pulte wrote that Trump’s firing of Cook was “escalating his battle against the central bank” — seeming to acknowledge that targeting Cook was motivated by Trump’s ongoing grievances with Fed leadership.

Cook’s firing is legally dubious, and her attorney, Abbe Lowell, said in a statement that Cook plans on suing the administration while continuing to perform her duties for the Fed. Lowell also represents James in her defense against the Justice Department case.

While the Supreme Court ruled in May that Trump may fire individuals from independent federal agencies, the justices singled out the Fed as an exception, calling it a “uniquely structured, quasi-private entity.” The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 states that the president may fire a member of its leadership only “for cause.”

But cause has not been definitively established to fire Cook, with Pulte writing in his letter to Bondi that the Fed governor had only “potentially” committed mortgage fraud, accusing her of falsifying bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms.

Pulte has accused Cook of listing two homes — in Ann Arbor, Mich., and in Atlanta — as her primary addresses within two weeks of purchasing them through financing. Cook said she would “take any questions about my financial history seriously” and was “gathering the accurate information to answer any legitimate questions and provide the facts.”

Pulte’s other accusations, against James and Schiff, have been similarly superficial, publicly accusing individuals of potential criminality before a full, independent investigation can take place.

And whether those investigations will be impartial is far from clear. Earlier this month, Bondi appointed Ed Martin, a conspiracy theorist who supported the “Stop the Steal” movement after Joe Biden’s election victory over Trump in 2020, as a special prosecutor to investigate the James and Schiff cases.

Pulte accused James — who successfully accused Trump of financial fraud in a civil suit last year — of falsifying bank statements and property records to secure more favorable loan terms for homes in Virginia and New York. He made similar claims weeks later about Schiff, who maintains residences in California and the suburbs of Washington, D.C.

Schiff, who led a House impeachment of Trump during the president’s first term and has remained one of his most vocal and forceful political adversaries since joining the Senate, dismissed the president’s claims as a “baseless attempt at political retribution.”

A spokesperson for Schiff said he has always been transparent about owning two homes, in part to be able to raise his children near him in Washington, and has always followed the law — and advice from House counsel — in arranging his mortgages.

In making his claims, Trump cited an investigation by the Fannie Mae “Financial Crimes Division” as his source.

A memorandum reviewed by The Times from Fannie Mae investigators to Pulte does not accuse Schiff of mortgage fraud. It noted that investigators had been asked by the FHFA inspector general’s office for loan files and “any related investigative or quality control documentation” for Schiff’s homes.

Investigators said they found that Schiff at various points identified both his home in Potomac, Md., and a Burbank unit he also owns as his primary residence. As a result, they concluded that Schiff and his wife, Eve, “engaged in a sustained pattern of possible occupancy misrepresentation” on their home loans between 2009 and 2020.

The investigators did not say they had concluded that a crime had been committed, nor did they mention the word “fraud” in the memo.

Aug. 26 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Monday fired Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook as he continues to feud with her boss over lowering interest rates.

The legality of Cooks’ firing was unclear, and has prompted Democrats to accuse the Republican president of perpetrating an “illegal authoritarian power grab.”

Trump informed Cook of her dismissal in a letter he made public on his Truth Social platform, informing the first Black woman to sit on the Reserve Board that he has “determined that there is sufficient cause to remove you from your position” over allegations of making false statements on mortgage agreements.

“In light of your deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter, they cannot and I do not have such confidence in your integrity,” Trump said in the letter.

Trump fired Cook following months of applying political pressure on her boss, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, to lower interest rates. Amid the insults and demands Trump has made of Powell, the Trump-nominated chair from his first administration has stated economic policy will not be influenced by politics.

On Aug. 15, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte, a Powell critic, sent a criminal referral for Cook to Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing Cook of falsifying documents as well as mortgage, bank and wire fraud for signing mortgage documents. She is accused of signing two separate mortgage documents for two separate properties that claim each is her primary residence. One property is in Michigan and the other is in Atlanta. The two documents were allegedly signed two weeks apart during the summer of 2021.

After Pulte made the criminal referral public, Trump called for Cook to resign, which she did not do.

In his Monday letter, Trump cited the allegations against Cook, saying her signing of both mortgage documents “exhibits the sort of gross negligence in financial transactions that calls into question your competence and trustworthiness as a financial regulator.”

Cook was fired under the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, which stipulates that the president may only remove members of the board for cause.

“The illegal attempt to fire Lisa Cook is the latest example of a desperate president searching for a scapegoat to cover for his own failure to lower costs for Americans,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass, ranking member of the Senate Banking Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, said in a statement.

“It’s an authoritarian power grab that blatantly violates the Federal Reserve Act, and must be overturned in court.”

Pulte on Monday night thanked Trump for his “commitment to stopping mortgage fraud” by firing Cook.

“Fraud will not be tolerated in President Trump’s housing market,” he said on X.

Trump campaigned on using the office of the presidency to retaliate against his political rivals. Since returning to the White House in January, he has used his executive powers to strip security clearances from perceived political rivals, including lawyers who prosecuted his criminal cases, as well as law firms and former security officials.

Along with Cook, New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff of California have also been accused of mortgage fraud.

Early this month, Trump has also fired Erika McEntarfer, the Senate-confirmed head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, after job growth was slower than expected, claiming the numbers were inaccurate. Democrats and critics accused Trump of dangerously politicizing economic data.

Cooks’ firing is expected to be challenged in court, but her vacancy permits Trump to nominate a replacement.

Following Cooks’ firing on Monday, Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., described Trump’s move as “reckless” and clearly unlawful.”

“The Federal Reserve Act permits removal only for cause, serious misconduct, not partisan smears dressed as ‘referrals’ from a hack like Ed Martin,” Nadler said in a statement. Martin has been tapped to be the special attorney on mortgage fraud cases.

“Trump undermining the Fed for political reasons endangers financial stability and every American’s livelihood, and must be challenged in court immediately.”

Aug. 8 (UPI) — The U.S. Department of Justice has subpoenaed New York Attorney General Letitia James‘ office in a criminal investigation.

Two grand jury subpoenas were issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York seeking information about James’ investigations into the Trump Organization and National Rifle Association, according to CNN, NBC News and ABC News.

There is also a grand jury investigation into James in Albany, N.Y. It is said to be looking into deprivation of rights against Trump.

“Investigating the fraud case Attorney General James won against President Trump and his businesses has to be the most blatant and desperate example of this administration’s carrying out the president’s political retribution campaign,” said Abbe Lowell, an attorney for James. “Weaponizing the Department of Justice to try to punish an elected official for doing her job is an attack on the rule of law and a dangerous escalation by this administration. If prosecutors carry out this improper tactic and are genuinely interested in the truth, we are ready and waiting with the facts and law.”

Neither the Justice Department nor the White House has commented on these investigations.

A spokesperson for the New York Attorney General’s office told NBC News: “Any weaponization of the justice system should disturb every American. We stand strongly behind our successful litigation against the Trump Organization and the National Rifle Association, and we will continue to stand up for New Yorkers’ rights.”

James sued and won against Trump and his company over fraudulent misrepresentations of his wealth and financial statements. Her office won over $300 million in the case, which is now at over $500 million in interest while he appeals.

James’ office also sued the NRA and its leadership. James had sought dissolution of the NRA, but that was struck down. But she did win a civil fraud case against Wayne LaPierre. A jury convicted him of taking millions from the organization for personal use.

In May the Justice Department opened an investigation into James’ real estate transaction. She responded, saying that she had made a mistake on a mortgage application and that she had filed letters correcting the error.

James is one of many on Trump’s list of political enemies.

He has repeatedly said she is biased against him. In 2021, he sued to stop her fraud investigation, saying, “Her mission is guided solely by political animus and a desire to harass, intimidate, and retaliate against a private citizen who she views as a political opponent.” The lawsuit also alleged that Trump was the victim of “viewpoint discrimination.” He later dropped the suit.

July 31 (UPI) — New York’s police commissioner promoted slain officer Didarul Islam to detective during his funeral at a Bronx mosque on Thursday morning.

Thousands of police officers, local officials and mourners lined the street outside the Parkchester Jame Masjid mosque in the Bronx to honor Islam.

“Look at all the NYPD officers here and outside this mosque and across this city who stand with you,” New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch told Islam’s family while speaking at the funeral.

“I am so heartbroken for you and your family,” Tisch said.

“As we scan the sea of blue, you will notice they look a whole lot like Didarul,” she continued.

“They wear his uniform, his shield [and] his collar brass,” Tisch said.

“They carry on his purpose and are sworn to finish the work he started,” she added, “and they will be there for you, always.”

Tisch then promoted Islam to detective-first grade, which is an NYPD tradition.

Islam, 36, was among four people who were killed by Las Vegas resident Shane Tamura during a mass shooting at an office building at 345 Park Ave. in New York City on Monday.

Tamura was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Gov. Kathy Hochul and state Attorney General Letitia James were among elected officials who attended the funeral.

The funeral service started at 10 a.m. EDT, followed by prayer services at noon.

A “solid wall of blue” stood in a downpour as the hearse carrying Islam’s body from the mosque following the funeral service.

Islam’s body afterward was transferred to his family for a private burial service.

Islam had served on the NYPD for four years, was a father of two, and he and his wife were expecting the arrival of a third child.

Adams and Tisch visited the NYPD’s 47th Precinct station house on Wednesday to attend its morning roll call and talk with police officers.

Adams also visited with Islam’s family on Wednesday night.

July 29 (UPI) — A group of 22 states filed a lawsuit to stop the Trump administration from forcing states to give information about residents receiving SNAP benefits.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced Monday that he has joined a coalition of 21 attorneys general, including New York Attorney General Letitia James, who have filed suit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA.

According to a press release from Bonta’s office, the USDA is demanding that states turn over “personal and sensitive information” about millions of recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP benefits.

A federally funded program, SNAP is administered by states to provide food assistance. The money provided is in the billions and is supplied to millions of low-income families across the United States. To receive SNAP benefits, recipients must supply their personal information, which Bonta’s office states happens “on the understanding, backed by long-standing state and federal laws, that their information will not be used for unrelated purposes.”

Bonta’s office alleged that the USDA is threatening to withhold SNAP funding unless states turn over such personal information, which would effectively force “states to choose between protecting their residents’ privacy and providing critical nutrition assistance to those in need.”

California said that the USDA demanded in May that all states supply a great deal of personal information in regard to all SNAP applicants and recipients, such as their social security numbers and home addresses, dating back five years.

For just the state of California, that would equal over 5 million people.

“This isn’t just about data,” Bonta posted to social media Monday. “It’s about making sure families aren’t forced to choose between feeding their kids and exposing themselves to government retaliation.”

According to the release, the Trump administration has justified this demand in order to prevent fraudulent use of SNAP. Bonta said that both federal and state law do not allow California to disclose such information unless absolutely necessary, or due to extraordinary circumstances.

“President Trump continues to weaponize private and sensitive personal information,” said Bonta. “Not to root out fraud, but to create a culture of fear where people are unwilling to apply for essential services.”

“We’re talking about kids not getting school lunch; fire victims not accessing emergency services; and other devastating, and deadly, consequences,” Bonta continued. “This unprecedented demand that states turn over SNAP data violates all kinds of state and federal privacy laws and further breaks the trust between the federal government and the people it serves.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Monday that New York had joined the lawsuit and alleged that among the information illegally sought by the federal government is each SNAP recipient’s immigration status.

“Families should be able to get the assistance they need without fearing that they will be targeted by this administration,” she said on social media.

Included in the case docket for the lawsuit filed by the attorneys general is a letter sent by the USDA on Friday that demands that states each turn over SNAP participant data by Wednesday. Failing to do so, the USDA letter states, “may trigger noncompliance procedures” under current U.S. law.

California said it receives around $1 billion annually to administer SNAP and fears a federal delay in funding could be “catastrophic for the state and its residents who rely on SNAP to put food on the table,” according to Bonta’s office.

“The president doesn’t get to change the rules in the middle of the game, no matter how much he may want to,” Bonta further stated. “While he may be comfortable breaking promises to the American people, California is not.”

“We will not comply with this illegal demand,” he added. “We’ll see the President in court.”

May 27 (UPI) — Retailer Walmart will pay a $16,000 fine for shipping realistic toy guns to New York buyers in violation of state law, state Attorney General Letitia James announced on Tuesday.

New York law bans retailers from selling or shipping toy guns that are black, dark blue, silver or aluminum-colored and resemble real firearms.

“Realistic-looking toy guns can put communities in serious danger,” James said in a news release. “That is why they are banned.”

She said realistic-looking toy guns can be used to engage in unlawful activity and have led to several deaths and shootings across the state and Walmart’s third-party sellers sold them to New York buyers.

“Walmart failed to prevent its third-party sellers from selling realistic-looking toy guns to New York addresses, violating our laws and putting people at risk,” James said.

“The ban on realistic-looking toy guns is meant to keep New Yorkers safe,” she added. “My office will not hesitate to hold any business that violates that law accountable.”

A state investigation showed third-party retailers used Walmart’s online store to sell non-compliant toy guns that they shipped to New York addresses via Walmart’s fulfillment services.

Investigators bought a realistic-looking toy gun that violated New York’s general business law’s ban on such toys and had it shipped to an address within the state.

The violations netted a $16,000 fine that Walmart paid to settle the matter.

A Walmart official said the retailer does its best to comply with respective state and federal laws and ensure third-party retailers do, too.

“We are committed to complying with all laws, and we have processes in place to ensure products offered for sale by third-party sellers on our marketplace comply with all applicable laws as well,” Walmart global communications senior manager Kelly Hellbusch told UPI in an emailed statement.

James said New York consumers can report non-compliant toy guns by reporting them in an online complaint.