New York Attorney General Letitia James has dismissed the Trump administration’s criminal referral accusing her of mortgage fraud, calling the accusations “baseless” but refraining from offering any specifics in a recent interview.
James joined Spectrum NY1’s “Inside City Hall” on Thursday, where she pushed back against claims made by the Trump administration that she manipulated real estate filings in both New York and Virginia.
“Let me just say to all New Yorkers and to all Americans: the allegations are baseless. The allegations are nothing more than a revenge tour,” James told host Errol Louis during the interview.
Asked specifically about the federal claim that she misrepresented the number of bedrooms in her Brooklyn property—listing four instead of five—James avoided offering clarification.
“As you know, as any good attorney, I will not litigate this case in a camera. It is important that we respond to these allegations at the appropriate time and in an appropriate way,” she said.
“I will not go back and forth with respect to these baseless allegations. I am more focused again on standing up for freedom, liberties, and the rule of law in the state of New York.”
James suggested the Trump administration’s actions are part of a pattern of targeting certain groups and institutions, placing herself among other alleged victims of what she labeled a retaliatory campaign.
“My office was successful in securing a $450 million judgment against Donald Trump and others for exaggerating the value of his assets,” James said, also noting that the total owed to the state “growing every day.”
She took aim at members of the media as well, criticizing those who have stationed themselves outside her Brooklyn home and near her family’s residence in Virginia. She accused them of crossing the line into “harassment.”
James also chose not to directly respond when questioned by New York Post reporters near her upscale Brooklyn townhouse on Wednesday, offering few answers to their inquiries.
She said no officials had contacted her in advance of the recent federal referral.
“I will not be silenced, I will not be bullied, I will not bend, I will not break, and I will not bow to anyone,” the attorney general stated, adding, “No one is above the law.”
Earlier in the week, the U.S. Federal Housing Agency submitted a criminal referral naming James to Attorney General Pam Bondi, alleging that she had fabricated documentation and real estate filings to receive favorable mortgage rates on properties in New York and Virginia.
{Matzav.com}