The New York Times is reporting that Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg is close to reaching a plea deal with Trump Organization honcho Allen Weisselberg. The deal would have Trump’s CFO serve five months, but notably, it would not require Weisselberg to cooperate with the Manhattan DA’s “ongoing”, going through the motions investigation of Donald Trump.
Bragg made some noise about going after Trump when he ran to replace Cy Vance as Manhattan DA in 2021, and even after election he claimed he would be would be "personally involved" in the Trump case.
There was a firestorm in February when two experienced and highly regarded white collar crime prosecutors resigned after Bragg indicated he wasn’t interested in pursuing the Trump case. In its reporting on the resignations, the Washington Post reported the following about Bragg’s lack of interest:
One person familiar with the situation said the new prosecutor took weeks to read memos Dunne and Pomerantz had prepared and didn’t meet with them for some time, even though the grand jury’s term was set to expire this spring. When they did meet, Bragg didn’t seem keenly interested, said this person, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations in an ongoing investigation.
Due to the inactivity, members of the grand jury were instructed to stay home on days they were slated to serve, according to one of the people with knowledge of the developments.
Five months with a no cooperation deal indicates that the Manhattan DA’s investigation into Trump for tax and insurance fraud is as dead as Francisco Franco, largely thanks to either the corruption or the cowardice of Alvin Bragg, who is unfit for the job he holds. While Trump committing tax fraud and insurance fraud is hardly as big a deal as things like inciting riots and trying to overthrow the government or stealing nuclear secrets, it’s still something that a prosecutor should, well, prosecute.
Alvin Bragg is a disgrace.