Letitia James
Appearances
NPR News Now
NPR News: 01-23-2025 7PM EST
It represents justice. for untold victims who suffered because the Sacklers basically put profits over people.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
So let me just say that, you know, I live in my beloved Brooklyn and individuals come up to me each and every day who I hold in my arms who are crying, just afraid of our government. Individuals who are concerned about their loved ones not coming home. Individuals who are afraid to take their child to school, to go to the doctor, to even go into a courthouse.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
Individuals who have been witnesses to horrific crimes. And obviously I'm concerned about our government, but it's going to take all of us moving in the same direction to stand up and to defend this democracy, not just democratic attorneys general, but regular citizens and other elected officials. That's what we have got to do. And as an attorney general who believes in the law,
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
I'm joining with other attorneys general. I'm joining with the minority leader. I'm joining with members in the United States Senate. And we were hosting town hall meetings. We had one just recently in Arizona. We are hosting another one very soon in Minnesota, which will be led by Attorney General Keith Ellison.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
There'll be one in Connecticut, one in Vermont, and I will be hosting one in New York. We need to tell the stories of individuals who have lost their job. We need to let people know that this administration is a threat to our security, a threat to everything that we believe in, a threat to our values and our principles.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And we need to stand up and we need to, again, speak out loudly and clearly and tell the stories. tell the stories and let people know that this, too, is our country. And by God, I was going to curse, but I won't curse.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
Thank you. I appreciate you.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
I took an oath to the constitution and not to the king. And that's what we are doing each and every day. It was not my intention to resist.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
But it is my intention, obviously, to ensure that the rights and privileges of New Yorkers are respected and to use the law both as a sword and as a shield, particularly to protect vulnerable and marginalized populations and individuals who tell me their stories each and every day about losing their job, individuals who are afraid about Social Security, individuals who are veterans, law enforcement individuals, and people who are afraid
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
Listen, when Donald Trump ran for office, he promised Americans that he would lower the cost of eggs and consumer products. He indicated that he would stop the war, bring peace in the war for Ukraine. He would stand up. and bring peace to that situation. He would end the conflict in Israel and Gaza. He said a whole bunch of things.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
He said our markets obviously would be strong and that we would, and he would make America first. And nothing could be further from the truth. Elon Musk has said it's all about corruption and waste and fraud. They've indicated that individuals who are over 100 and some odd years are getting Social Security. It's just lies. Americans were duped. They fell for it.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
Yeah, so first of all, thank you so much for allowing me to be on your podcast. I really appreciate it. You know, listen, we brought the case against Donald Trump, who was then a civilian, because he inflated his assets for the purposes of taking advantage of low interest rates and insurance rates. You know, he engaged in this pattern and practice of illegality.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And the reality is, is that we're looking at Trump. We're looking at inflation. We're looking at the price of eggs go up. Our markets have been falling today. The reality is, is that he has befriended Putin. He has weakened NATO and he has abandoned Ukraine. because he supports and he likes strongmen. It's all a bunch of lies.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And then, you know, he believes in a Unitarian type of government where all of the power is in his hands and not democracy. And so our system of government, the power of the purse belongs to Congress, and he is attempting to ignore that. He's calling upon members of the judiciary, saying that he is going to I bring them up on charges and try to, you know, go after these judges.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
He has an enemies list. I'm on it and other individuals who are standing up to him. At the end of the day, it's important that individuals understand that they cannot be afraid, that this type of government, authoritarian government requires cooperation and consent. But democracy, my friends, requires courage.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And so I urge everyone to stand up and tap some steel in their back, including Republican members of Congress, and to let him know that there's more of us than there are of those in the White House, and that we together, unified, are more powerful than he is. And so that's why I'm urging everyone to raise their voice,
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
Attorneys General, you know, we've organized and we prepared and we anticipated the possibility of a Trump administration. You know, we stood up to him during Trump one, and now we are much more coordinated and organized. We've analyzed Project 2025, again, something that he said he knew nothing about, but this is straight out of Project 2025.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
we've analyzed circuits all throughout this country we've analyzed jurisdiction venue and that's why after the birthright citizenship that executive order we were able to file suit within 48 hours we've continued to knock it out of the box and we are winning winning winning because again we believe in the rule of law we believe in the constitution
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And we believe that the power of the purse belongs to Congress and not the president of the United States. And he cannot, with the stroke of a pen, or should I say Sharpie, basically ignore or dismiss or dismantle the rule of government. You've got to respect Congress and you've got to respect the Constitution and you've got to respect the constitutional order of our system.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And that's what we do each and every day. Nothing more and nothing less.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
So the first case was birthright citizenship, which is in our 14th amendment, enshrined in the 14th amendment. And so he issued an executive order. And again, within 48 hours, we were able to get a temporary restraining order and then ultimately a preliminary injunction. Then he issued an executive order on behalf of OMB, the Office of Management and Budget, basically freezing funds
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And it was following a two-year investigation after hearing individuals' witnesses before a hearing. And so he would like to allege that it was politics, but it really wasn't. It was based on facts and the rule of law. And so we were able to secure a summary judgment. And then after a hearing, we secured a judgment and the interest rate continued to go up
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
for a wide range of essential services all throughout the United States, including Meals on Wheels, Head Start, Social Security program initiatives and grants to veterans and law enforcement agents. All of these essential and critical services he sought to pause, again, because he wanted these agencies to to comply with his wishes.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And we were able to get a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction. Then we filed a case against the Treasury Department because Elon Musk and his ban of engineers gained access to our very private and sensitive information, our social security numbers, our insurance information, and our addresses, and we were able, we were successful there.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
A number of agencies, including USAID, including Department of Defense, all of the federal agencies, we were able to get a preliminary injunction with respect to those cases. NIH, the National Institute of Health, was his other executive order, going after
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
um these institutions here in the state of new york some suny colleges who engage in groundbreaking groundbreaking expertise and groundbreaking scientific research to find cures to cancer and to find cures to parkinson's and heart disease and these
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
agencies, National Institute of Health gives grants to the University of Albany, the University of Buffalo, Stony Brook, and these are economic engines within these respective towns. We were able to get an executive order, we were able to get a temporary restraining order, and then we were able to get a preliminary injunction.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
Then he filed an action against employees, probationary employees, and the law requires that the states be given 60 days notice, and they violated that. Again, executive order, and they dismissed, and they fired all these individuals. Again, we were successful. in court and getting a temporary restraining order and a hearing on that case is on Thursday.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
There was a case with regards to grants for teachers to teach underserved communities and rural communities all throughout the state of New York and all around this country. And we, again, were able to seek a TRO, and that hearing is also on Thursday as well. We've also issued guidances to law enforcement and to hospitals that serve the LGBTQ community, again, focusing on gender-affirming care.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
So the list goes on and on and on. Whenever he issues an executive order, it's the blue wall of defense, the attorneys general all across this country who responded in record time defending the rights of individuals, defending the rule of law and standing up for our democracy and for our freedom. And we'll continue to do that even with their threats and even
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
you know with all of their um you know the fact that they throw everything against the wall and see what's going to stick you know attorneys general um we're prepared to respond in record time what do you think of when uh you know given all of your legal experience and leading the top legal office in the state of new york when uh trump's doj lawyers
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And we are awaiting at this point in time a decision from the appellate division of the state of New York. And now what he is doing is causing more chaos, confusion and contempt, contempt for the law, contempt for individuals who work each and every day to serve our government, contempt for Congress.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
Listen, we've got the Administrative Procedure Act and most of the times they come into court and the decisions and the executive orders are arbitrary, they're capricious, they're not grounded in fact and draw the law. And there's just no evidence to substantiate what they are attempting to do. This is an attempt to remake government. That's what it is.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
It's an attempt to remake our form of democracy and to turn this into an autocratic government, a unitarian type of government. And we've got to stand up and we've got to fight back. You know, a lot of the members of DOJ, like Danielle Sassoon, who submitted her resume at DOJ, you know, they're heroes and cheeros, individuals who stood up and said, we took an oath.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And a lot of the actions that this administration has taken is basically in violation of the law. And so I salute her for their courage. I salute them because they represent, in my mind, they are you know, individuals who were brave. And she, you know, led so many other like-minded members of DOJ, like-minded US attorneys who said, we just are not going to violate our code of ethics.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
We're gonna follow the law. And we are going to depart from the Department of Justice. And it's unfortunate that more individuals in the Department of Justice don't do the same and just exit the Department of Justice. Because again, we all took an oath not to a king, but to the Constitution. And it's up to us to defend that right.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
And that's what we do here in the New York State Attorney General's office. And that's what so many other Democratic Attorney Generals do each and every day in their respective offices. And it's an honor and a privilege to serve with them.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
So let me just say that you can't deport individuals simply because you disagree with their political philosophies or their ideology. You know, basically detaining and arresting someone in the middle of the night without due process just violates the Constitution and due process requires that he have a hearing. And that hearing will determine whether or not he has in fact violated
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
Republican members have just rolled over and allowed Elon Dusk and his musketeers, obviously, to gain access to our private and personal information. He's throwing everything against the wall to see what sticks. And it's basically a brazen attack on a democratic system of government. And so I've got a duty and obligation to defend the rule of law.
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
a rule of law, a section of law, whether or not he's violated the terms of his permanent citizenship. And I just will allow the system of government and the system to work its course. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday and we await the decision, but I suspect at the end of the day that
The MeidasTouch Podcast
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Cases Against Trump
by detaining someone, by arresting someone, by not providing them with due process runs afoul of our system of government.