Democratic attorneys common are making ready for the struggle of their careers in opposition to President-elect Donald Trump, who plans to start mass deportations on “day one,” amongst many different merciless insurance policies.
These prime authorized public servants are vowing to guard the constitutional rights of their residents, and a few are crossing state traces to staff up for the struggle.
West
Kris Mayes, Arizona
Mayes assumed workplace in 2023, after beating the Republican candidate by 511 votes. The race concerned important consideration to voting rights and election integrity. Her focus is on combating fraud, cyber scams, and elder abuse in addition to pushing again in opposition to extremist assaults on reproductive rights, prosecuting political corruption, and defending voting rights.
“I don’t consider, in electing Donald Trump, Arizona voters voted to shred the U.S. and Arizona constitutions,” she stated shortly after the presidential election. “And if Donald Trump tries to do that, he’ll have to go through me first.”
Rob Bonta, California
California Gov. Gavin Newsom talks with Legal professional Normal Rob Bonta on Dec. 2, 2024, in Sacramento, Calif.
Bonta has a $25 million authorized conflict chest to struggle Trump.
“Let me be clear, President-elect Trump’s immigration agenda is draconian and his rhetoric, xenophobic,” stated Bonta at a latest press convention. “We’re issuing up to date insurance policies to information establishments and their workers in complying with California legislation limiting state and native participation in immigration enforcement actions.”
Phil Weiser, Colorado
Weiser has been Colorado’s lawyer common since 2019 and was reelected in 2022. He has used his workplace to guard the Endangered Species Act, struggle fraud, make sure the state’s proper to manage greenhouse fuel emissions from automobiles, and maintain the Sackler household—which owned Purdue Pharma, maker of the extremely addictive drug OxyContin—accountable for his or her function within the opioid epidemic.
Anne Lopez, Hawaii
Lopez has served the Aloha State since 2022. Her prime priorities are growing entry to well being care and increasing inexpensive housing. Lopez and Hawaii Gov. Josh Inexperienced are amassing a $10 million authorized conflict chest in opposition to Trump. They joined different blue states in making ready a coalition in opposition to the Trump administration.
Aaron Ford, Nevada
Ford has served since 2019 and was reelected in 2022. He’s the primary Black particular person to carry the workplace in Nevada’s historical past.
“It would be a lie to say that President-elect Trump’s upcoming term does not concern me, based on his prior disregard for the law,” Ford stated. “Though there are many areas which concern me, including reproductive rights and antitrust protections, I will pay close attention to any action that seems like it may run afoul of the law.”
Raúl Torrez, New Mexico
Torrez was sworn into workplace in 2023. His priorities are defending democracy, crime prevention, and reproductive well being care entry. Earlier this yr, he launched a report on the legal investigation into New Mexico’s fake-elector scheme, which Trump promoted.
“It is disgraceful that New Mexicans were enlisted in a plot to undermine democracy and thwart the peaceful and orderly transfer of power,” he stated in an announcement in January.
Dan Rayfield, Oregon
Rayfield can be sworn into workplace in January 2025. His incoming priorities are gun violence, substance abuse and homelessness, reproductive well being care entry, client and employee protections, and environmental coverage.
Nick Brown, Washington
Brown can be sworn in January 2025. He’s lately been vocal in regards to the “uniquely dangerous threats” Trump will carry together with his second administration.
“Make no mistake, I do view the threats from the next Trump administration as profoundly serious and as uniquely dangerous to some of the protections and interests here in Washington state,” he stated on Dec. 3.
Midwest
Kwame Raoul, Illinois
Raoul has served as lawyer common since 2019. His focus is on local weather legal guidelines, resembling power effectivity requirements, and combating in opposition to illegal pharmaceutical practices.
In 2018, he spoke out in opposition to Trump’s try and kill the Reasonably priced Care Act. Per week later, he joined different Democratic attorneys common by opposing Trump’s merciless coverage of household separation. In September, the courtroom granted his judgment that Chicago’s Trump Worldwide Lodge and Tower violated the state’s environmental legal guidelines. He and Colorado Legal professional Normal Phil Weiser have drawn up a playbook to struggle Trump.
“For years, Trump Tower failed to follow state and federal regulations that protect the health of the Chicago River and the balance of critical aquatic ecosystems therein,” Raoul stated. “All entities—no matter who they are—must be held accountable when they willfully disregard our laws.”
Dana Nessel, Michigan
Michigan Legal professional Normal Dana Nessel speaks throughout a press convention in Feb. 2019 in Lansing, Mich.
Nessel assumed workplace in 2019 and was the primary overtly homosexual particular person to be elected to statewide workplace in Michigan. She has gained nationwide consideration for her work on client safety, legal justice reform, LGBTQ+ points, and political corruption. This yr, Nessel spoke on the Democratic Nationwide Conference in help of Harris.
In November, Nessel wrote an op-ed within the Detroit Free Press slamming Trump’s Cupboard picks as exhibiting “disdain for victims of sex assault.”
“With these nominations, we are telling survivors of sexual assault that they don’t matter, that their trauma is meaningless and that they should stay silent,” she stated. “And they will.”
Keith Ellison, Minnesota
Ellison started serving in 2019 and was reelected in 2022. He’s the primary Black American and Muslim American to carry the workplace in Minnesota’s historical past. Ellison has labored on points associated to the safety of staff and environmental advocacy, and performed a distinguished function within the prosecution of Derek Chauvin, the previous police officer convicted of the homicide of George Floyd in 2021.
“If [Trump] violates the rights of people, we’re gonna sue, it’s simple as that,” he advised reporters.
Josh Kaul, Wisconsin
Kaul has served since 2019. He launched an investigation into Trump’s fake-elector scheme within the 2020 election.
“We have been tested in this office,” Kaul stated in a press convention on Nov. 8. “If the new administration infringes upon the freedoms of Wisconsinites or attempts to use our system of justice as a tool for vengeance, we will act.”
He additionally chimed in on his workplace’s effort to guard reproductive rights.
“Folks are worried about what the future holds for women’s ability to make their own reproductive health care decisions,” he added. “Those kinds of actions are wrong and we are committed at the Department of Justice to standing up against them.”
East
William Tong, Connecticut
Tong has served as lawyer common since 2019. In 2020, he was a part of a multistate lawsuit in opposition to the Trump administration over the rollback of environmental rules associated to local weather change and air-quality requirements.
“Number one, we don’t know how it’s going to go down,” Tong advised a bunch of residents after Trump’s victory. “We know it’ll likely be aggressive, and hardly a day went by when I first became attorney general that I didn’t get a phone call about an undocumented person in a church or somewhere, and what do we do? That was bad, but I expect it to be 10 times that.”
Kathy Jennings, Delaware
Jennings has served the state since 2019 and was reelected in 2022. Her prime priorities are company accountability, “making Delaware a safer place to live and raise our children,” and bettering the justice system for all.
In 2022, she criticized the GOP for spreading lies in regards to the 2020 election that led to the violent Capitol revolt on Jan. 6, 2021. “The fact that 18 Republican attorneys general who are sworn to uphold the rule of law tried to subvert it is profoundly disturbing,” Jennings stated. “Even in Delaware, our president’s home state, our state Republican Party filed a lawsuit that attempted to throw out 80,000 vote-by-mail ballots in our small state. That’s about 16% of all the ballots our state cast in the general election.”
Brian Schwalb, District of Columbia
Schwalb was sworn into workplace in 2023. His priorities are enhancing public security and defending younger individuals, selling fairness and alternative throughout the District, tackling the rise in hate crimes, and defending democracy within the wake of Jan. 6.
In 2023, Schwalb opened an investigation in opposition to Leonard Leo, a Trump ally and architect of the conservative-leaning Supreme Courtroom, on allegations of violating nonprofit tax legal guidelines.
Aaron Frey, Maine
Frey has served since 2019 and was reelected for his fourth time period in November. Frey has labored to carry pharmaceutical firms accountable and joined the multistate coalition opposing Trump.
“I will be an open and willing partner to communities and organizations working for a humane immigration system,” Frey stated shortly after this yr’s election.
Frey added that he joined 20 different state lawyer generals to reply to immigration insurance policies of Trump’s second time period, and be sure that “the Constitution and the laws of Maine are upheld in the coming years.”
Anthony Brown, Maryland
Maryland Legal professional Normal Anthony Brown speaks as Gov. Wes Moore listens on Sept. 24, 2024.
Brown was sworn in as lawyer common in 2023. He’s the primary Black American elected lawyer common of the state. His focus is on defending democracy and the precise to vote, legalizing hashish, defending reproductive rights, and stopping gun violence.
“Preserving the rule of law in service of justice for every Marylander remains my highest priority,” Brown stated in an announcement the day after the election. “The Office of the Attorney General will continue to use every tool at our disposal to ensure the rights of Marylanders are protected, regardless of changes at the federal level.”
Andrea Campbell, Massachusetts
Campbell took workplace in 2023 and is the primary Black girl to function lawyer common in Massachusetts’ historical past. Her priorities are legal justice reform, client safety, and environmental justice. Earlier this yr, she campaigned for “dear friend” Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
Campbell stated she’s ready to defend the state’s abortion-provider defend legislation in opposition to Trump. The legislation protects suppliers from authorized motion if their apply goes in opposition to different states’ abortion legal guidelines.
Matt Platkin, New Jersey
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy appointed Platkin to the place in 2022. Platkin performed a big function in advancing authorized points associated to legal justice reform, environmental protections, and financial coverage.
“Rest assured, we are ready to step in and I will be prepared to sue him and see him in court,” Platkin stated after Trump’s win. “It is not something I wake up every day dying to do. It is not the reason that I was honored to take this job. But it is something I’m now prepared to do to protect the residents of this state.”
Letitia “Tish” James, New York
James has served since 2018 and was reelected in 2022. She’s the primary Black girl to carry the workplace, and Trump as soon as known as her “the WORST Attorney General in the U.S.”
In 2019, James launched a high-profile civil investigation into the Trump Group to find out whether or not the corporate had engaged in fraud by inflating property values in monetary statements. The case centered on whether or not these inflated valuations have been used to safe favorable loans and keep away from paying taxes. In September 2022, after a three-year investigation, James filed a $250 million lawsuit in opposition to Donald Trump and his kids—Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump—and ultimately elevated it to $370 million.
The civil lawsuit is ongoing, and Trump has sought to have the case dismissed, however the courts have typically dominated in opposition to him.
“We’ve created contingency plans, so no matter what the next administration throws at us, we’re ready,” she said the day after the election. “We’re ready to respond to their attacks. We’re ready to respond to any attempts to cut or eliminate any funding to the great state of New York.”
Jeff Jackson, North Carolina
This yr, Jackson gained his election in a state that went to Trump. He’ll be sworn into workplace in January 2025. His priorities are tackling the fentanyl epidemic, client safety, and supporting legislation enforcement.
Peter Neronha, Rhode Island
Neronha has served since 2019 and has a historical past of combating Trump in the course of the president-elect’s first administration, throughout which he joined a coalition of Democratic attorneys common opposing Trump’s nationwide emergency declaration relating to the U.S.-Mexico border.
Charity Clark, Vermont
Clark was sworn into workplace in 2023. Her prime priorities are tackling local weather change, combating for small companies and customers, and legal justice reform.
“The federal government can’t break federal statute. They can’t violate the Constitution, and it’s attorneys general like me who will represent the states in making sure that that doesn’t happen,” stated Clark in an interview.
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