What you need to know
• Entering a plea: New York Attorney General Letitia James is set to appear in a Norfolk, Virginia, federal court at 11 a.m. for her arraignment on felony charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution. She’s expected to enter a plea of not guilty to both.
• Trump’s retribution campaign: James is among those that President Donald Trump has long sought retribution against, along with former FBI Director James Comey, former national security adviser John Bolton, Sen. Adam Schiff and others. James won a civil suit against Trump, his adult sons, and the Trump organization for inflating the value of hotels, golf courses, and other properties to obtain favorable interest rates on loans and insurance.
• The charges: Prosecutors allege James misled a bank when she obtained a mortgage on a Norfolk property by stating it would be a second home, not an investment property. They say doing so allowed her to save $18,933 over the 30-year life of the loan. James calls the charges baseless, and a person familiar told CNN her grandniece and the woman’s children live in the home and James has never collected rent.
• Yesterday’s filing: James filed a notice on Thursday that her legal team plans to ask for her indictment to be dismissed, citing the appointment of President Donald Trump’s handpicked prosecutor Lindsey Halligan.
