New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on What It Takes to Keep Trump in Check [View all]

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https://www.gq.com/story/new-york-attorney-general-eric-schneiderman-trump-interview


New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on What It Takes to Keep Trump in Check
By Ben Schreckinger
6 hours ago

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GQ: As a Democrat and a state attorney general investigating the president and his administration on several fronts, has the era of Donald Trump given you a new appreciation for federalism and the power of the states—a cause that gets championed often by conservatives?

Eric Schneiderman: I think apart from those investigations, there’s a renewed appreciation for progressive federalism. We’ve known for a long time that states are usually where the most effective policy changes are made, whether it’s worker’s rights, women’s rights, or a livable wage. But as people are now witnessing, states are also the first line of defense when the federal government mounts attacks on our civil liberties, healthcare, or economic prosperity. I think state A.G.s on the left and right always appreciated that fact, but now we’re seeing more journalists and members of the public recognize that reality too.

On the policy side, what do you expect will be New York State’s biggest legal showdowns with the Trump administration?

We have a number of critical fights ahead. We pledged to sue over the first and second healthcare bills that sought to repeal the Affordable Care Act, slash Medicaid, and undermine women’s rights. We’ll continue to monitor the threat of a disastrous healthcare bill.

It’s important to keep in mind that in one respect the healthcare fight is part of a wider effort by radical conservatives to oppress and disempower women. Denying women access to contraception and abortion services is a critical part of the larger machinery of oppression, discrimination, and violence against women and it's incumbent on all of us to fight.

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Are you worried about the rule of law in this country?

This is a president who doesn’t like checks on his power. I got a front row seat to that when I investigated him for fraud in the Trump University case. Now we see it in his executive orders, several of which we’ve fought successfully to overturn.

Those of us in law enforcement and in prosecutors’ offices across the country have a responsibility to ensure that the rule of law survives. If we can’t get checks on the presidency from Congress, my office won’t hesitate to fill the space. I’m willing to bet on the rule of law. At the end of the day, I think that’s what the people want and it’s what they’ll fight for.

Interview has been lightly edited for clarity.