Morning Digest: Trump's DOJ orders prosecutors to drop Eric Adams corruption charges

It's a stunning blow to the rule of law, but will the interim U.S. attorney comply?

New York City Mayor Eric Adams (credit: Eric Adams Facebook)

Leading Off

New York, NY Mayor

Donald Trump's Justice Department ordered federal prosecutors in Manhattan to drop their corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Monday evening, though it was not immediately clear how interim U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon would respond to the directive.

In a two-page letter, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove suggested without evidence that Adams, a Democrat who was indicted last year for allegedly accepting bribes from the Turkish government, had been targeted for prosecution because he had "criticized the prior Administration's immigration policies."

He also claimed that the case had "improperly interfered with Mayor Adams' campaign in the 2025 mayoral election," even though charges were filed in September—nine months before the Democratic primary and 13 months before the general election. (Unwritten guidelines generally followed by federal prosecutors advise against indicting politicians 60 days before an election.)

Bove added that the indictment had "unduly restricted Mayor Adams' ability to devote full attention and resources to the illegal immigration and violent crime that escalated under the policies of the prior Administration." That argument—"that a powerful defendant could be too occupied with official duties to face accountability for alleged crimes," as the AP put it—would represent a major blow to the rule of law.

It's also one the mayor himself has rejected. Adams has long insisted that his attention has not been diverted by the many investigations into his alleged misconduct.

"I'm focused on protecting the people of the city and the investigations will take care of themselves," he said at a September press conference not long before charges were unveiled. "And that is not where my time is going to be consumed."

Adams, though, appeared to seek Trump's intervention in his case, even visiting Mar-A-Lago last month. Adams claimed the two did not speak about the matter, though he also never ruled out accepting a pardon from Trump—something one of his opponents in the primary, Comptroller Brad Lander, demanded he do. On Monday, Adams also directed his staff not to criticize the Trump administration, a story first broken by The City's Katie Honan hours before Bove's letter became public.

Even if Sassoon complies, Judge Dale Ho would also have to approve any decision to drop the case. Despite his legal woes, Adams has continued to campaign for a second term, though hypothetical polls—including two released just days ago—show him faring poorly.

Senate

GA-Sen

Republican Rep. Mike Collins tells The Hill's Caroline Vakil he'd consider challenging Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff next year, but only if Gov. Brian Kemp sits out the race. Fellow Rep. Rich McCormick's team, however, notably did not show such deference to Kemp—or even mention the governor at all—when Vakil inquired about his interest in taking on Ossoff.

"Of course Dr. McCormick is considering a run for Senate," the congressman's senior advisor said in a brief statement. This is the first time McCormick has publicly expressed interest in such a campaign.

KY-Sen

Rep. Andy Barr told Republican donors over the weekend that he'll run next year to succeed Mitch McConnell in the Senate, CBS reports. Barr's team did not confirm or deny his plans to replace the former GOP leader, who almost everyone expects will retire after seven terms representing Kentucky. That talk only intensified last week when the 82-year-old McConnell fell twice on the same day.

Governors

GA-Gov

Democratic state Sen. Jason Esteves is getting ready to run for governor, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Esteves, who is a former chair of the Atlanta Board of Education, has yet to say anything publicly, but the paper writes that his "discussions are such an open secret that we regularly get calls about them." Because state officials are barred from raising money while the legislature is in session, any announcement would likely come after lawmakers adjourn in early April.

Esteves is Puerto Rican with Black ancestry and identifies as both Latino and Black. He would also be the first person of color elected to lead Georgia, a distinction that several other prospective Democratic candidates could also achieve.

OH-Gov, OH-LG

Republican Gov. Mike DeWine unexpectedly announced that he would nominate famed college football coach Jim Tressel as Ohio's new lieutenant governor at a press conference on Monday. The news immediately sparked speculation that Tressel, whose decade with the Ohio State Buckeyes included a 2002 national championship win, could run for DeWine's job next year—an idea neither would dismiss.

When a reporter asked the 72-year-old Tressel, who recently finished a stint as president of Youngstown State University, whether he had "any political ambitions beyond this two-year stint as lieutenant governor," Tressel spoke instead about how he would focus on his new job. (The relevant portion begins at the 17:34 mark.)

Another journalist followed up by asking if Tressel was "ruling out a 2026 run for statewide office," prompting DeWine to jump in.

"We've had no discussion about that," said DeWine, who cannot seek a third term. "I asked Jim to sign up for a little less than two years, and that's what he's agreed to do …. We've had no discussion about anything else."

DeWine's decision to appoint Tressel, who needs to be confirmed by both chambers of the Republican-dominated legislature, comes during a volatile period in Buckeye State politics. DeWine originally intended for his first lieutenant governor, Jon Husted, to run to replace him in the governor's office, but he scrapped those plans when he instead tapped Husted to replace JD Vance in the Senate.

The new frontrunner for governor is businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, who posted wide leads against Attorney General Dave Yost in a pair of recent primary polls for Ramaswamy-friendly groups. While Ramaswamy, unlike Yost, has yet to announce he'll enter the race, he said Monday he'd have "a big announcement" sometime in "late February."

Tressel, for his part, has never run for office despite chatter that's put him at the top of Republican wishlists going back more than a decade. That talk began in 2011, almost immediately after Tressel resigned as OSU coach due to a federal investigation into allegations that his players traded memorabilia for cash and tattoos.

The Youngstown Vindicator's Bertram de Souza seems to have been the first to publicly talk up Tressel—who'd earned the nickname "​​The Senator" for his unflappable disposition during games—as a possible candidate for the actual Senate. In a piece published right after the coach's resignation, De Souza argued that Tressel would be a stronger opponent for Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown than the GOP's leading name, Treasurer Josh Mandel.

Politico dismissed the idea as "unfounded speculation," and Tressel never showed any obvious interest in taking on Brown in what was still a swing state. (The Democrat beat Mandel the following year.) Tressel instead took over as president of Youngstown State University in 2014, and for a time that seemed to be the end of his would-be political career.

Things changed, though, in 2018 when Mandel abruptly pulled the plug on his planned rematch with Brown. As Republicans frantically searched for an alternative, the idea of running Tressel didn't seem far-fetched. The conservative Washington Examiner wrote that the former coach had "become a top GOP recruit," though Republicans seemed skeptical they could actually land him.

"He would be awesome, and he could win—but I'm not sure he would do it," one operative said. "There's no one better we could get. He'd be a star."

Tressel, however, once again stayed out—and Brown once again prevailed. The former coach did, however, use his clout that year to aid the successful House campaign of one of his former wide receivers, Anthony Gonzalez. (Gonzalez later became a pariah in GOP politics after voting to impeach Trump for the Jan. 6 riot and did not seek a third term in 2022.)

Tressel's name briefly came up again in 2021 after Republican Rob Portman announced he would not seek reelection to Ohio's other Senate seat, but this time, he quickly took his name out of contention. Tressel said he would stay at YSU, adding that "it is time for the young guys to step up." Vance, who is more than three decades Tressel's junior, ultimately won the race to replace Portman.

Tressel's time in academia ended in 2023 when he stepped down from his post at YSU. (He was succeeded by Rep. Bill Johnson, a fellow Republican who lacked academic qualifications and whose early departure triggered an unexpectedly close special election.) But while few expected to see Tressel's name ever grace a ballot, DeWine's decision to appoint him lieutenant governor may finally give his fans the campaign they've been waiting so long for.

House

IA-01

Christian activist David Pautsch says he'll seek a rematch against Iowa Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who beat him by a surprisingly weak margin 56-44 margin in last year's Republican primary.

Pautsch, who revealed his plans to Bleeding Heartland's Laura Belin, blasted his once and future opponent as a phony Donald Trump supporter who is really a "Trump hater." Pautsch kept last year's race close despite raising only about $40,000 for his last effort and predicted he'd do better this time.

Miller-Meeks' underwhelming performance in the primary may have been a portent of problems to come in the general election. The congresswoman held off Democrat Christina Bohannan just 50.0-49.8 even as Trump, according to calculations by The Downballot, carried her 1st District 54-45. Miller-Meeks' 798-vote margin was the smallest of any House Republican, making it very likely that Democrats will target her southeastern Iowa constituency again next year.

NE-02, NE-Sen, NE-Gov

Independent Dan Osborn tells The Omaha World-Herald that he's considering challenging GOP Rep. Don Bacon next year, comments that came in response to a piece in the Cook Political Report saying he could run in the competitive 2nd District.

But Osborn, a former labor leader who lost a bid against Republican Sen. Deb Fischer by a 54-46 margin last year, said he was also thinking about running for Nebraska's other Senate seat or seeking the governorship. Osborn said that he might decide by the end of February or in early March but did not indicate if he was leaning toward any particular race.

The state Democratic Party, however, hopes he won't go up against Bacon. Party chair Jane Kleeb told the World-Herald, "We're going to run a competitive Democrat in the 2nd Congressional District," though she said Democrats might support Osborn for another office.

NJ-07

Former Summit Councilman Greg Vartan announced Monday that he'd seek the Democratic nomination to take on Republican Rep. Tom Kean next year. Vartan campaigned for this competitive seat in 2024 but dropped out well before the primary. He launched his second campaign days after Navy veteran Rebecca Bennett kicked off her own bid for New Jersey's 7th District.

NY-21

New York Democrats halted their plan to pass a bill that would have allowed Gov. Kathy Hochul to delay the expected special election for the conservative 21st District until the fall, though the idea doesn't appear to be dead.

Hochul, multiple media outlets say, asked legislative leaders to set the plan aside as part of her effort to reach a deal with the Trump administration over congestion pricing in Manhattan.

"The governor would delay any kind of action on the election bill as a way to generate a little bit more leverage to prevent Trump from unilaterally eliminating congestion pricing," an unnamed source explains to Politico.

Mayors & County Leaders

New York, NY Mayor

State Sen. Zellnor Myrie received an endorsement Monday from Rep. Dan Goldman ahead of the June Democratic primary. Goldman, who rose to national prominence in 2019 as the lead Democratic counsel in Donald Trump's first impeachment, represents Lower Manhattan in Congress, though a small portion of his seat overlaps with Myrie's Brooklyn base.

Grab Bag

Where Are They Now?

Donald Trump on Monday pardoned Rod Blagojevich, the former Illinois governor who rose to global infamy in 2008 for trying to sell President-elect Barack Obama's Senate seat. Trump previously commuted Blagojevich's 14-year prison sentence in 2020 after he'd served eight years behind bars. Following his release from prison, the longtime Democrat—who began calling himself a "Trumpocrat"—ardently stumped for Trump and other Republican candidates.

Correction: This piece incorrectly identified Georgia Rep. Mike Collins as Doug Collins.