Why Is Trump Suing New York Attorney General Letitia James

Former U.S. President Donald Trump is suing New York Attorney General Letitia James to limit her office’s ongoing investigation into himself and his company, the Trump Organization.

“The Trump Organization has continually sought to delay our investigation into its business dealings, and this lawsuit is yet another attack. Mr. Trump doesn’t get to dictate this investigation. We will continue undeterred because no one is above the law,” Attorney General James wrote on Twitter in response.

Trump previously took a legal battle to the Supreme Court over his tax returns related to the cases being pursued by James, who is a part of two separate investigations out of New York into Trump's affairs.

One is a criminal investigation into the Trump Organization; James' office is assisting Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance's office in that case. As AG, James is also pursuing a fraud investigation into the Trump Organization. The two cases are separate but related.

James has a longstanding outspoken animosity towards the former president and his actions, and she made “taking on Donald Trump” a central part of her campaign for AG. This latest criminal investigation into Trump and his company is being labeled as a “crusade,” according to the lawsuit.

Citing examples of her animosity toward the former president, the lawsuit mentions that James is a political activist and a member of the Democratic Party. The suit implies that because James is a Democrat, she cannot conduct an impartial investigation into Trump or the Trump organization.

The lawsuit alleges that James is acting as a biased party in her pursuit of criminal action against Trump. “It is particularly egregious when a prominent government official abandons [objectivity] in service of her won self-interests,” the lawsuit reads.

In the lawsuit, the parties allege that “James has deprived, and will continue to deprive, Plaintiffs of their rights under federal laws, state law, and common law by virtue of her callous acts. Even worse, rather than diligently prosecuting actual crimes in the State of New York — which are steadily on the rise — James has instead allocated precious taxpayer resources towards a frivolous witch hunt.”