On Thursday, we reported that federal authorities have launched a criminal investigation into New York Attorney General Letitia James over allegations of mortgage fraud. Later, during a Fox Business interview about these charges, George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley told host Elizabeth MacDonald that "the karma is crushing here."
During the segment, Turley pointed to contradictions in James' defense strategy that he believes mirror accusations she previously made against former President Donald Trump.
“These all have to be combed out,” Turley explained when asked about the seriousness of the charges. "The James defense team is saying that there were contradictions that were corrected, that, for example, that home was the primary residence of the other signatory.”
According to the referral from Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte, James is accused of falsifying records to obtain favorable loan terms on two properties: a Brooklyn brownstone she’s owned since 2001 and a Virginia home purchased in 2023. The case is now being handled by U.S. Attorney John Sarcone III, whose office in New York’s Northern District is leading the investigation. Pulte stated that James “appears to have falsified records” to meet lending requirements and secure better mortgage terms.
Turley noted that James' defense relies on an argument that financial institutions should have conducted their own due diligence, a standard she outright refused to grant Trump in her own case against him.
"It's an ironic defense because they're saying, 'Look, if the bank simply looked into this on their own, they could see that these were more units than just four, that this was not the primary residence of James,'" Turley stated.
He continued, "That's a type of understanding and leeway that she refused to allow to Donald Trump. She insisted that everything that was... signed in his name... really are bound legally to him. And so, they said you have an obligation to make sure everything filed was absolutely accurate."
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Turley did not hold back in his assessment of the situation, suggesting a certain poetic justice was at play. He reserved his strongest criticism for what he characterized as the most significant contradiction in James' position. "The greatest irony, of course, is to hear her counsel and her spokesperson say, 'You know, this is just wrong because Trump campaigned on moving against his enemies,'" he said.
This defense strategy particularly struck Turley as hypocritical, given James' own campaign rhetoric when running for attorney general. "For those of us who have covered this litigation for years, having those words come out of the mouths of James' staff really is breathtaking," he emphasized.
Turley recalled James' previous statements during her campaign, noting, "She campaigned on a promise to bag Donald Trump on something. She didn't even bother to name what it was. She literally campaigned... on the promise that she would nail him on anything, and then she filled in the violation later."
🚨NEW: @JonathanTurley explains the BREATHTAKING IRONY In Letitia James’ Legal Defense 🚨
— Mariane Angela (@MarianeAngelaDC) May 8, 2025
"So the karma is crushing here. But the greatest irony, of course, is to hear her counsel and her spokesperson say, you know, this is just wrong because Trump campaigned on moving against… pic.twitter.com/Ql4WcZMi8U
Naturally, we’ve come to expect that Democrats have one set of rules for themselves and another for everyone else. In their version of justice, Democrats commit the crimes—and Republicans serve the time.
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