Letitia James stumped by debate question while GOP rival delivers ‘zinger for the ages’

New York Democratic Attorney General Letitia James went silent for several seconds when asked to name a former state attorney general she admired during Thursday’s New York attorney general race debate.

“Tick tock,” Errol Louis of Spectrum News 1, one of the moderators said to James, prompting laughter from the Attorney General.

The attorney general’s race in New York comes against the backdrop of James’ ongoing dispute with President Donald Trump, who called James “a Complete and Total Disaster” and accused her of leading a “WITCH Hunt” against him in his endorsement of James’ Republican challenger, Saritha Komatireddy, in August.

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The pause from James drew immediate criticism from Komatireddy, a former federal prosecutor and chief of staff for the Drug Enforcement Administration, who quipped from the podium that James “only admires herself.”

“An absolutely devastating moment for Tish James,” conservative communications strategist Steve Guest wrote on X. “‘She only admires herself’ is a debate zinger for the ages.”

“No, no, no, no, we admire others,” James said. “I admire all of the past attorney generals because it is a difficult job and you’ve got to stand up.”

When asked the same question, Komatireddy named Dennis Vacco, who served as the state’s attorney general from 1995 to 1998. Like Komatireddy, he was also a former federal prosecutor.

James then said that she admired former Democratic Attorney General Bob Abrams, who served from 1979 to 1993.

The exchange, which came in the final moments of Thursday’s debate, led critics to question whether James knew of other New York attorneys general.

“Very telling moment,” Steve McLaughlin, Rensselaer County executive, wrote on X. “James went completely blank because she’s A: dumb as a rock B: has no idea who any former AG is because she’s not doing the job and never has been.”

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“She’s a mouthpiece,” McLaughlin continued. “Zero institutional knowledge.”

“Letitia James doesn’t know the plural form of ‘Attorney General,'” another Twitter user wrote.

Nicole Kiprilov, a spokesperson for Komatireddy, echoed the candidate’s comment on the debate stage.

“Letitia James can’t name a single former Attorney General she admires because she’s too busy admiring herself. She’s turned the Attorney General’s office into her own political stage and ignored the safety of the state,” Kiprilov said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “New Yorkers deserve a real prosecutor, not a joke like her!”

But James’ campaign pushed back on Komatireddy’s characterization of James and how she runs her office.

“Attorney General Letitia James spent much of the debate teaching her opponent how the Office of the Attorney General actually works, and she was happy to name former Attorney General Bob Abrams as someone she respects,”  a spokesperson for James said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

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James’ attorney general’s office has been thrust into the national spotlight after New York Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul appointed James as special investigator to examine an alleged gang rape that occurred at Cornell University in October 2024. The renewed attention comes in response to a recent lawsuit filed by the alleged victim, Jane Doe, against the university, the alleged perpetrators, her sorority and a bar that allegedly served her alcohol while she was underage.

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But James has faced calls from an attorney for one of the defendants to recuse herself from the case over social media posts showing support for Jane Doe before James was appointed special investigator.