Trump's allegations of Justice Department bribery tie back to his valet's lawyer

Trump's Truth Social rant on Thursday accusing a DOJ prosecutor of bribery and intimidation ties back to an allegation that Trump's personal valet's lawyer lobbed at the prosecution, according to a new report.

The Guardian's Hugo Lowell explained that the recent Trump attack references a conversation the Justice Department had with the former president's personal valet Walt Nauta. According to the claim, a prosecutor mentioned an application that Nauta's lawyer sent in for a municipal judgeship in the course of attempting to get testimony against Trump. The DOJ has no control over judgeships.

"Nauta had already spoken to prosecutors in the investigation when they called his lawyer Stanley Woodward and summoned him to a meeting at Justice Department headquarters for an urgent matter that they were reluctant to discuss over the phone," Lowell said, quoting the Trump letter to the DOJ.

"When Woodward arrived at the conference room, he was seated across from several prosecutors working on the investigation, including the chief of the counterintelligence section, Jay Bratt, who explained that they wanted Nauta to cooperate with the government against Trump," the letter continued.

There was no direct threat or promise, according to the Trump description of the events. Still, Trump's lawyers, complaining of misconduct, sought the grand jury's transcripts. "Though a more innocent explanation for the exchange could be, for instance, that Bratt was genuinely surprised to see the application and raised it as an aside," wrote Lowell.

He also wrote that it isn't unusual for prosecutors to research the lawyers they're meeting with, just as Trump's allies have tried to track down dirt on Justice Department employees.

It's unclear whether it will have any impact on the case or the timeline. It's also unknown if Nauta will ultimately be charged with anything if he refuses to cooperate.

“Even if it’s true, it would not rise to the level of prosecutorial misconduct,” former US attorney Joyce Vance told The Guardian. “Prosecutors don’t have any influence over judicial applications, and all the parties to the conversation would have known that.”

Still, Woodward was "unnerved."

The Justice Department continues to refuse comment. Donald Trump's lawyers were given a target letter indicating that the former president is officially being considered for indictment.