(TargetLiberty.org) – Elise Stefanik, the chairperson of the House Republican Conference, filed an ethics complaint against the judge presiding over former President Donald Trump’s Manhattan trial, suggesting Judge Juan Merchan has an alleged conflict of interest because his daughter works at a firm that frequently represents Democratic politicians.
Merchan, who is currently presiding over the criminal trial against Trump and is acting Supreme Court Justice in New York, had been “privately cautioned” by the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct in 2020 over illegal political donations to Democrats and President Joe Biden, according to Stefanik’s filing.
Stefanik, a New York Republican, filed the complaint against Merchan with the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct, highlighting that Trump faced a maximum jail term of 136 years if convicted, and declared it wasn’t only the former President’s “interests at stake” but the “interests of all Americans.”
Stefanik highlighted that Merchan’s daughter, who is the president of Authentic Campaigns — a digital marketing and fundraising agency that has worked with Democrat PACs and politicians — had a client list that included Democrat Rep. Adam Schiff (California), who Stefanik accused of fundraising off of Trump’s criminal trial and indictment.
The former President has also requested that Merchan recuse himself from the trial based on the work his daughter does.
In her filing, Stefanik suggests Merchan appeared “driven by Democrat partisanship” and how his actions could be financially beneficial for his daughter.
She noted that partisanship would be more likely in “politically sensitive cases,” and that the trial was “under a microscope,” before relaying that it is “imperative” for Americans to have confidence that in New York justice is being fairly dispensed.
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