Inside a federal courthouse in Virginia on Friday, New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), who successfully prosecuted a civil lawsuit against President Donald Trump for defrauding bankers about his net worth so he could secure better loan terms, pleaded not guilty to allegations of bank fraud and making false statements.
“Not guilty, judge, to both counts,” James said in the courthouse on Friday, according to CNN.
The charges against James were brought after the president first publicly demanded U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi pursue James as well as other longtime Trump critics, including former FBI Director James Comey and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). Comey was indicted in September and pleaded not guilty; Schiff has not yet been indicted but has been under investigation for alleged mortgage fraud by the Trump Justice Department since August. NBC reported on Thursday, however, that the investigation into Schiff has stalled and that sources say there simply isn’t enough credible information to prosecute the senator. Another Trump critic — former national security adviser John Bolton — was indicted on 18 counts earlier this month for alleged retention of classified materials. Bolton pleaded not guilty.
