Lee Zeldin debunks Manhattan DA's claim that criticism of his soft on crime policies is because of racism

Manhattan, New York Democratic district attorney Alvin Bragg on Friday published an op-ed arguing that Rep. Lee Zeldin, the Republican candidate who ran for gubernatorial office against Gov. Kathy Hochul, "aggressively targeted" him throughout his campaign due to him being the "first Black district attorney in Manhattan history."

In an article titled "A safer, fairer Manhattan is within our reach: DA Alvin Bragg on where to go from here," published in New York Daily News, the Harlem native also said that Zeldin scrutinized him "while remaining silent on other prosecutors, including white district attorneys whose jurisdictions have comparable or less favorable crime rates."



"And despite what some reporting may lead you to believe, homicides and violent crime as a whole are generally higher in red states post-pandemic," Bragg claimed.

He then went on to characterize the alarm-sounding on crime spikes in Democrat-run cities as attempts to "stoke fear."

"So while we reject reckless hyperbole that tries to divide and stoke fear, we know safety concerns are real," Bragg said. He then listed out a plan to reduce crime that included "expanding the Hate Crimes Unit" and fighting back against crime caused by "landlords taking advantage of vulnerable New Yorkers and leaving them without housing."
 
In response to Bragg's claims of racism, Zeldin wrote that his criticisms of the district attorney have "NOTHING to do with his race," but "EVERYTHING to do with Bragg being one of the weakest, pro-criminal DAs in the US."

"If Alvin Bragg was so serious about fighting crime, he would rescind his Day One memo that outlines the many laws across-the-board that he refuses to enforce at all, and the many other laws that he treats as lesser offenses," the congressman continued in a statement.

"As we saw in the Jose Alba case and many other cases in his office, Bragg is one of the weakest-far left DAs in the entire nation," Zeldin said, referencing the case of a bodega clerk who Bragg charged with murder for defending himself.

Alba, 61, spent a week at Rikers Island before his family posted the $50,000 bail, which had originally been set at $500,000 cash, for fatally stabbing a man who entered his shop and attacked him.

Despite claiming he was acting in self-defense, Alba was initially arrested and charged with second-degree murder by the DA for the killing of Austin Simon.
 
At the time, Zeldin admonished Bragg's decision on Twitter, writing, "If Alvin Bragg moves forward with prosecuting Jose Alba, I will commute Alba's sentence at my very first opportunity."

Bragg later dropped the charge after prosecutors couldn't prove Alba "was not justified in his use of deadly physical force."

After losing to Gov. Hochul, Zeldin will serve out the rest of his term in New York's 1st Congressional District, after which fellow Republican Nick Lalota will take his place in January.