(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The lead attack-dog in the Mar-a-Lago case against President Donald Trump abruptly refused to answer basic questions during a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.
Former federal prosecutor Jay Bratt invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. He argued—without evidence—that Trump allies in Congress are weaponizing the government to crack down on political opponents.
“This administration and its proxies have made no effort to hide their willingness to weaponize the machinery of government against those they perceive as political enemies,” Bratt’s spokesperson, Peter Carr, told CNN.
“That should alarm every American who believes in the rule of law. In light of these undeniable and deeply troubling circumstances, Mr. Bratt had no choice but to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights,” Carr added.
Bratt abruptly retired from the DOJ in January, a move widely seen as preempting his imminent firing by the incoming Trump administration. He had been one of the lead prosecutors in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s so-called classified documents case against Trump.
Despite accusing Trump and his allies of weaponizing government, Bratt has repeatedly been accused of doing exactly that.
Even the Biden-led FBI raised concerns about his aggressive tactics and partisan donations, according to NBC News. Since 1993, Bratt had donated several hundred dollars to Democratic-aligned campaigns.
Retired FBI Agent Steven D’Antuono recalled internal resistance to Bratt’s desire to raid Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in 2022. “Jay was being a little overly aggressive. The aggressiveness that was there, from day one,” he said.
D’Antuono implied that Bratt’s aggressiveness may have been fueled by ambition: “This is a huge case. It’s the former president. Was some of it due to ambition? Jay has been an attorney for a long time. This is the case of the century.”
Bratt also faced an ethics complaint after Stanley Woodward, a lawyer for one of Trump’s co-defendants, accused Bratt of unethically mentioning Woodward’s judgeship application in a bid to coerce the defendant into cooperating with prosecutors.
Now, Bratt is one of several former DOJ officials currently under investigation by the House Judiciary Committee as part of Republicans’ efforts to unwind the weaponization of the federal government sustained under former President Joe Biden.
