Join Amazon Prime for exclusive deals, fast shipping, and endless entertainment! Sign up now!
The House Judiciary Committee practically had to drag former Manhattan prosecutor Mark Pomerantz in for questioning. Once they got him on the stand, they were disappointed by what he had to say. That’s because he didn’t say a single thing. The controversial colleague of Alvin Bragg knew that anything he says can and will be used against him later. He zipped his lip and stood on his rights not to incriminate himself.
Prosecutor pleads the fifth
After weeks of wrangling and negotiations, former Manhattan prosecutor Mark Pomerantz agreed to come in for his transcribed interview. He exhausted all his attempts to get out of it.
After dragging his feet until they wore down to stumps, he came in for questioning. Okay, I’m here, he declared. Then clammed up.
Alvin Bragg’s lead attorney on the criminal indictment of Donald Trump “refused to answer questions Friday during a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee,” New York Post reports.
Former Trump prosecutor Mark Pomerantz testified before the House Judiciary Committee today. I asked if he violated President Trump’s constitutional rights – he pled the fifth.
I asked if he violated standards of legal ethics – he pled the fifth.
I asked if he misused federal… pic.twitter.com/LG95HzHgI7— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) May 12, 2023
He called the watchdog panel’s probe “an attempt to obstruct and undermine” District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case against once and future President Donald Trump. The prosecutor wrote a whole book on the subject but won’t back a single word of it up under oath.
Pomerantz is obviously convinced that whatever he has to say will put him in prison. If he tells the truth, he’ll be admitting he committed crimes. If he lies to cover it up, he’ll instantly get caught in that, which is also a crime.
No matter what he says, he’s going to jail. I’ll just keep silent, he decided. As a former prosecutor, he knows exactly how screwed he is.
Guilt implied by silence
Trying to cash in on the controversy surrounding Donald Trump, Pomerantz wrote “a tell-all book that detailed the Manhattan District Attorney Office’s investigation into the 76-year-old former commander in chief.” The former prosecutor should have known he was asking for trouble.
When Jim Jordan wanted him to drop by and have a little chat with the House Judiciary Committee about what he wrote in his book, Pomerantz panicked.
Jordan is convinced that the criminal charges against Trump were “politically motivated.” They were, and as the prosecutor on the case, Pomerantz knew it. It’s also an intentional effort to sway the upcoming 2024 presidential election and everyone can see it.
After resigning as a prosecutor, Mark Pomerantz published a book on the "case against Trump" over the objections of his former colleagues and many of us. Yet, he is now taking the Fifth to avoid speaking to Congress. https://t.co/M7CooqSOqW
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) May 12, 2023
There’s no way short of physical torture he’s going to reveal “how Bragg’s office used federal funds during the grand jury investigation.” Everyone knows that the Johnnie Tight Lips act simply confirms whatever the committee believes they’ve figured out.
Pomerantz came in, sat down, took his oath and read a statement carefully prepared by his lawyers. As a former prosecutor, he knew what he was doing looks terrible for him but his alternative looks much worse. This way, he can have lawyers fight for his freedom and make the House investigators tag all the bases properly. He might avoid prison yet.
“Pomerantz told the panel in his opening statement that he was appearing ‘as required‘ because ‘I respect the rule of law,‘ before issuing his rebuke of the Republican-led probe and announcing his intention to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights.“
