DOJ Obeys Trump, Indicts Comey Days After Order to Pursue President’s Foes

Former FBI Director James Comey has been indicted on two criminal counts days after President Donald Trump ordered Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue his perceived enemies more aggressively.

The felony charges against Comey — one count of making false statements and another for obstruction of justice — are the most dangerous escalation of Trump’s retribution campaign and his efforts to wield the Department of Justice (DOJ) against his perceived political enemies.

The Eastern District of Virginia sought the indictment nearly a week after Trump forced Erik Siebert, the former U.S. attorney of that district, out of his post and replaced him with Lindsey Halligan, one of the president’s former personal attorneys who has no prosecutorial experience.

Siebert faced pressure to resign or be fired from Trump and White House officials after raising concerns about the Eastern District of Virginia’s cases against Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James (D).

Without mentioning Comey, Bondi said in a social media post Thursday that “No one is above the law.”

“Today’s indictment reflects this Department of Justice’s commitment to holding those who abuse positions of power accountable for misleading the American people,” the attorney general claimed. “We will follow the facts in this case.”

In a video statement on social media, Comey said he was innocent and welcomed a trial.

“My family and I have known for years that there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump, but we couldn’t imagine ourselves living any other way,” Comey said.

“We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn’t either,” he said. “I’m not afraid, and I hope you’re not either. I hope you are engaged and are paying attention. And you will vote like your beloved country depends upon it, which it does.”

“My heart is broken for the Department of Justice, but I have great confidence in the federal judicial system. And I’m innocent, so let’s have a trial.” 

The indictment against Comey alleged that he “did willfully and knowingly make a materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statement” to a senator during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in September 2020. The document, however, did not specify what the alleged false statement was.

The indictment also claimed Comey “did corruptly endeavor to influence, obstruct and impede” the committee’s investigation on the FBI’s probe into links between Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia.

During that hearing, Comey defended the Russia election interference investigation and testified that he hadn’t leaked information to the media and did not authorize anyone else in the FBI to do so.

Halligan, the only attorney to sign off on the indictment, brought the charges just five days before a Sept. 30 legal deadline, which is when the statute of limitations of the alleged crimes was set to expire.

The same grand jury that approved the indictment refused to indict Comey on a second charge of making a false statement to Congress. 

Shortly after news of the indictment broke, Trump — who has long vowed to get revenge on Comey over the Russia investigation — called the former FBI chief “One of the worst human beings this Country has ever been exposed to.”

Though Comey had not been found guilty of a crime with the indictment, the president claimed, “Justice in America!”

Trump abruptly fired Comey in 2017 because of the Russian collusion probe.

This story has been updated with additional information throughout.