(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Former prosecutor Mark Pomerantz, known for his involvement in the Manhattan prosecution of Trump, invoked the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination during a hearing held by the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee.
The committee is investigating Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s criminal charges against former President Donald Trump and Pomerantz’s testimony was a focal point of the probe Friday.
Rep. Matt Getz, R-Fla., a vocal supporter of Trump, questioned Pomerantz about potential violations of the former president’s constitutional rights. Pomerantz’s decision to plead the fifth drew criticism from Getz, who accused him of being biased against Trump and possibly violating legal ethics.
“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,” Gaetz said via Twitter, also highlighting a video from his Rumble podcast Firebrand. “I asked if he violated standards of legal ethics – he pled the fifth.”
Mark Pomerantz, a former prosecutor in Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg's office, arrives on Capitol Hill to give a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee on the recent indictment of Donald Trump in New York. pic.twitter.com/LqlmL5aSFf
— The Recount (@therecount) May 12, 2023
In defiance of the committee’s investigation, Pomerantz dismissed the deposition as political theater to obstruct justice.
“This deposition is for show,” Pomerantz said, noted NBC News. “We are gathered here because Donald Trump’s supporters would like to use these proceedings to attempt to obstruct and undermine the criminal case pending against him, and to harass, intimidate and discredit anyone who investigates or charges him.”
.@repdarrellissa on former New York District Attorney Mark Pomerantz’s deposition before the House Judiciary Committee: "I've never had a more obstructive and less cooperative witness in my over 20 years in Congress." pic.twitter.com/Z8o0Fi1hFR
— CSPAN (@cspan) May 12, 2023
Gaetz, in his podcast, torched the “Trump hater” former prosecutor’s refusal to answer questions about his involvement in preparing the case against Trump.
“Now, because Mark Pomerantz had written a book on the subject of his time at the Manhattan DA’s office; because he was a Trump hater working to build this case; because he may have broken laws on rules of legal ethics, statutes, we wanted to interview him in the House Judiciary Committee,” a fired-up Gaetz said in the podcast, later torching him for refusing to answer questions.
“Mark Pomerantz, the prosecutor who was literally in charge of building the case against Trump, pleaded the Fifth to almost every question we asked him today,” Gaetz continued.
The House Judiciary Committee accuse Pomerantz of shaming Bragg into filing criminal charges against Trump.
“Last year, you resigned from the office over Bragg’s initial reluctance to move forward with charges, shaming Bragg in your resignation letter—which was subsequently leaked—into bringing charges,” Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said in a subpoena letter to Pomerantz.
