Trump’s indictment of Letitia James, briefly explained

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here. Welcome to The Logoff: President Donald Trump successfully directed the indictment of another of his personal political enemies, New York state Attorney General Letitia James. What happened? James was indicted for bank fraud on Thursday in Virginia, where she owns a vacation home. She had been under federal investigation for mortgage fraud in connection with that home, but investigators had previously been unable to find evidence that she committed a crime. Why was James indicted? Because Donald Trump wanted her to be. The former US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia declined to bring charges against James and was forced out late last month. Subsequently, Trump installed Lindsey Halligan, previously his personal lawyer, as US attorney. Halligan was expressly chosen to target Trump enemies; in a September social media post addressed to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Trump wrote, “What about Comey, Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff, Leticia??? They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done. … JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!” Since then, former FBI Director James Comey and Letitia James have both been indicted. What’s Trump’s history with James? In 2022, James sued Trump, three of his children, and his family business on behalf of New York state, alleging widespread fraud; he was found guilty by a judge in 2023 and assigned a $500 million penalty, among other punishments. The penalty has since been voided and is still under litigation. What’s the context? Bill Pulte, the Federal Housing Finance Agency director who has become one of Trump’s top attack dogs, has helped dredge up flimsy mortgage fraud allegations against a number of Trump opponents, including James, Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), and Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. Trump had attempted to use these allegations as a pretext to remove Cook from the Fed board, though she has not been criminally charged; today’s indictment is an alarming escalation in how Trump intends to wield such accusations. And with that, it’s time to log off… Vox’s Unexplainable has another fantastic music episode out this week, featuring some great trivia about the Who’s “Baba O’Riley.” You can listen to it here. Have a great evening!