New York Attorney General Letitia James is using the growing number of legal and ethical allegations against her that resulted in a Department of Justice investigation as a tool to solicit donations from New Yorkers.
Her strategy appears to blend defiance, victimhood, and partisan rhetoric in a calculated appeal for money, as she attempts to transform serious allegations of fraud and misconduct into rallying cries for cash.
A recent Letitia James campaign fundraising appeal texted directly to thousands of New Yorkers illustrates this strategy clearly.
In it, James addresses her supporters with a combative tone, quoting Trump aide Stephen Miller’s recent statement calling her “one of the most corrupt, shameless individuals ever to hold public office.”
Rather than addressing or rebutting the substance of his criticisms, James frames them as politically motivated attacks, stating that “Trump is on a revenge tour against me for holding his administration accountable and stopping their MAGA agenda in court.”
She goes on to urge supporters: “If you’re with me, chip in now to help fight back against this smear campaign”.
This fundraising appeal is no outlier. It’s part of a broader pattern by Letitia James to deflect attention from serious allegations with cries of political persecution.
James currently faces allegations of mortgage fraud and other crimes as detailed by William Pulte, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
In his April 14, 2025, letter to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Pulte alleges that James may have falsified bank documents and property records to acquire government-backed assistance and loans with more favorable terms.
As I reported in The Gateway Pundit, in 2011 James successfully disposed of her 10% high-interest-rate private bank mortgage on her Brooklyn apartment building by refinancing with a federal Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) loan, and receiving a favorable 2.7% interest rate on the back of American taxpayers.
However, documents indicate that James qualified for the loan only by falsely stating her apartment building had only four rental units, when the Certificate of Occupancy actually showed five.
Also, as detailed on Sam Antar’s White Collar Fraud website, in August 2023, Letitia James co-signed for a mortgage for a property located at 604 Sterling Street in Norfolk, Virginia, alongside her niece, Shamice Thompson-Hairston.
As part of this transaction, James executed a notarized Power of Attorney (POA) on August 17, 2023, which included a sworn declaration stating, “I hereby declare that I intend to occupy this property as my principal residence.”
This declaration was instrumental in securing favorable lower mortgage rates typically reserved for primary residences.
James later stated that she was just being a “good Aunt” because her niece “had children” and she “wanted them to have a home”. However, as I reported in The Gateway Pundit, the so-called “children” were in fact adult convicted felons.
Nonetheless, James has sidestepped all these issues in her public messaging.
Rather than clarify her actions, she appeals to her supporters’ emotions. Her rhetoric portrays herself as a victim of Trumpian retribution and a heroic defender of progressive values, evoking language like “I refuse to be silenced” and pledging never to stop “fighting for the rule of law and our constitution”.
In her text, James weaponizes the accusations themselves, using the political fallout not to clarify her ethics – but to cash in on them.
Her appeal portrays the image of a beleaguered public servant, suggesting that any scrutiny of her conduct is merely a partisan “smear campaign.”
However, the allegations against James aren’t merely about Trump or partisan vendettas. They include a wide array of questionable actions involving 43 years of real estate transactions, including James’s first home purchase where she pretended to be married to her own father to obtain more favorable loan terms.
If the laws Letitia James enforces in New York state are to have any legitimacy, the same scrutiny applied to others must apply to her. A failure to hold James accountable for her issues can only erode public trust in the office she holds.
New York state simply cannot have an attorney general who behaves as though she is “above the law” and considers serious allegations to be merely a fundraising opportunity.
Joel Gilbert, is a Los Angeles-based film producer, and president of Highway 61 Entertainment and producer of the new film Roseanne Barr Is America. He is on Twitter: @JoelSGilbert.
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