ABC's Jon Karl: Prosecutors' exodus from DOJ compares to 'darkest days of Watergate'
ABC News journalist Jonathan Karl on Sunday compared recent resignations by career prosecutors at the Department of Justice (DOJ) under President Trump to "the darkest days of Watergate."
Karl was referencing resignations that have occurred in the Southern District of New York after federal prosecutors were ordered by a top DOJ official to dismiss corruption charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams (D), who has aligned himself with President Trump in recent weeks.
“The top prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, Danielle Sassoon, a highly respected conservative who was appointed by Donald Trump, blasted the move, and she resigned in protest,” Karl said during ABC's "This Week." “Six other career prosecutors followed her lead and resigned — an exodus that has drawn comparisons to the darkest days of Watergate.”
The anchor's comments were first highlighted by Mediate.
Adams was facing corruption charges and allegations of taking bribes, which he denies.
The order from Trump's DOJ to drop the charges come as the mayor has increasingly aligned himself with Trump's immigration policies.
"Adams must be removed. The city cannot sustain being governed for nearly a year by a Mayor who is being coerced by Trump admin in order to escape charges," Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said social media last week.
Trump and his allies have regularly railed against what they say is the "weaponization" of the Justice Department under Democrats.
In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Sassoon said the Adams deal would set "a breathtaking and dangerous precedent," tantamount to "using the criminal process to control the behavior of a political figure."
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