'Baseless conspiracy': Dem operative hits back after subpoena from Jim Jordan
Longtime Democratic operative and digital fundraiser Mike Nellis revealed on Wednesday that Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) had subpoenaed information from his company Authentic Campaigns and one of the company's employees.
The subpoena is related to Republicans' claims that Manhattan Judge Juan Merchan cannot oversee Trump's case because of his daughter's work at Authentic Campaigns.
Jordan has responded by investigating Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's case against Trump, and it seems that Nellis has been targeted as a witness of interest.
"We have just received a subpoena from Jim Jordan and the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee," Nellis wrote in a statement on X. "This is yet another abuse of power, aimed at promoting a baseless right-wing conspiracy theory that links our company, Authentic, to Donald Trump’s fraud trial."
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He explained they're reviewing Jordan's subpoena with their legal team and will reveal more information when it becomes available. But Nellis also accused Jordan of weaponizing Congress to attack political opponents of Trump.
"Let us be clear: these allegations against our company are completely false and purely politically motivated," Nellis said. "This is a blatant attempt to intimidate us and divert attention from Donald Trump’s conviction. We refuse to be bullied, and we will not allow House Republicans or MAGA extremists to spread lies about our work. We remain steadfast in our mission and are deeply grateful for the unwavering support of our friends and family during this time."
Last month, Jordan subpoenaed Merchan's daughter, but Nellis rejected the demand, calling the move "a baseless right-wing conspiracy theory."
He called the suggestion that his company was "somehow involved in the Donald Trump fraud trial in New York," completely "baseless," "absurd" and "false."
"However, this has not stopped MAGA world conspiracy theorists from harassing our employees and sending death threats to some of our families," Nellis said. "I’m speaking up today because on August 1st, Jim Jordan and the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee opened a partisan investigation into Authentic, which they immediately leaked to Twitter and Fox News to publicize within minutes of us receiving the letter."
It's unclear if that happened on Wednesday; however, Nellis commented on the subpoena an hour after Fox News posted a report on the matter.
"They are pursuing a baseless, MAGA-led conspiracy theory to call into question the fact that Donald Trump was found guilty in his NY fraud trial by a jury of his peers," Nellis said.
He explained that for the past year, he's trusted the process, but the committee began "recklessly" spreading "misinformation and endanger[ing] lives."
MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin explained that the company said no work had been done for President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris this election cycle.
A judicial New York ethics board cleared Merchan of any possible conflict of interest before the trial began.