President Trump Increases Pressure on Prosecutors to Target His Rivals
President Trump is turning up the pressure on the Department of Justice (DOJ) and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue prosecutions of his political opponents.
In particular, the President is urging cases to be brought against New York Attorney General Letitia James, California Senator Adam Schiff, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, and former FBI Director James Comey. James, Schiff, and Cook are facing accusations of mortgage fraud while Comey is facing accusations of lying to Congress about the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
The president upped the stakes by appealing directly to Attorney General Bondi on social media.
“Pam: I have reviewed over 30 statements and posts saying that, essentially, ‘same old story as last time, all talk, no action. Nothing is being done. What about Comey, Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff, Leticia??? They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done,” the president posted.
The drama also escalated when Erik Siebert, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, declined to bring charges against James for mortgage fraud and Comey for lying to Congress, saying there was not enough evidence.
The president then said, “I want him out,” and Siebert resigned.
That prompted an outcry from many including Abbe Lowell, an attorney for Cook and James.
“Firing people until he finds someone who will bend the law to carry out his revenge has been the President’s pattern – and it’s illegal. Punishing this prosecutor, a Trump appointee, for doing his job sends a clear and chilling message that anyone who dares uphold the law over politics will face the same fate,” said Lowell.
Comey Case Pending
Siebert was replaced by Lindsey Halligan, a former insurance lawyer who served as the most junior member of President Trump’s legal team
Now with Halligan in charge in the Eastern District of Virginia, reports say that the DOJ is seeking to indict Comey for perjury before the five-year statute of limitations runs out, even as the prior prosecutorial team found not enough evidence to charge him.
"DOJ officials are close to deciding whether to prosecute former FBI Director James Comey for allegedly lying to Congress in September 2020," said a source to Fox News. "There is a grand jury underway looking at the matter in Virginia. A decision could come any day."