President Donald Trump has long threatened to go after his political rivals, and when federal prosecutors followed through on the president’s wish Thursday evening, delivering an indictment against former FBI Director James Comey, Republican lawmakers rushed to defend the historic move against a sea of outraged Democrats.
“Russiagate was a complete hoax, and those that perpetrated this should face justice,” Rep. Tim Burchett told NOTUS. “No one is above the law.”
Burchett’s response was a common refrain among Republicans who have been eager to take legal action against the architect of the bureau’s investigation into the 2016 Trump campaign’s ties to Russia. Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel used the same quote in their own social media posts: “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,” Bondi said. “We will follow the facts in this case.”
Republican lawmakers appear to be taking their rhetorical lead from administration officials.
“No one is above the law,” Rep. Andy Biggs, who is running for governor in Arizona, posted on X.
Trump teased a Comey indictment in a Saturday Truth Social post directed to Bondi, in which he called for the Justice Department to prosecute his political enemies, including Comey, and griped that U.S. attorney in Eastern Virginia, Erik Siebert, “was never going to do his job.” On Monday, Trump placed his personal defense lawyer and White House staffer, Lindsey Halligan, in the role.
Halligan quickly convened a grand jury to indict Comey on charges of making a false statement and obstruction of proceedings.
Comey responded to the charges in an Instagram video, saying “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. We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn’t either.”
Democrats who have long warned that Trump would make good on his retribution-oriented presidential campaign and pursue charges against his political foes were infuriated, if not surprised, by the indictment.
“The Comey indictment is one of the most sickening abuses of power in the history of the DOJ,” Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told NOTUS. “Trump is using every tool available to get vengeance on his political rivals. It’s corruption plain and simple — our country deserves better.”
“I’ve had my differences with James Comey in the past, but I can spot trumped-up charges a mile away. Trump said he’d go after him, then fired a superb, ethical prosecutor when he refused to bring frivolous charges against those whom Trump perceived to be his enemies,” Sen. Tim Kaine said in a statement.
“Now he has installed yet another one of his personal lawyers as the interim U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia — this one a Florida insurance lawyer with no prosecutorial experience and no connection to Virginia — to do his bidding. The rule of law must prevail,” Kaine continued.
Sen. Adam Schiff, who led Trump’s first impeachment has faced repeated legal threats from the president, posted on X that in his nearly six years as an assistant U.S. attorney he “never witnessed such a blatant abuse of the department.”
“The DOJ is now little more than an arm of the president’s retribution campaign,” Schiff said.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, who led Trump’s second impeachment and is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, also slammed the White House in a statement.
“The rule of law was supposed to replace vendettas, blood feuds, and mad kings exacting vengeance on their perceived enemies,” Raskin said. “This sordid episode is one more savage assault on justice in America.”
Rep. Don Beyer called the indictment “an act of vengeance.” Sen. Peter Welch called the indictment “a new low for our democracy.” Sen. Mark Warner called it a “dangerous abuse of power.”
“Our system depends on prosecutors making decisions based on evidence and the law, not on the personal grudges of a politician determined to settle scores,” Warner said. “By ousting a respected, independent prosecutor and replacing him with a partisan loyalist, Trump is undermining one of the most important U.S. Attorney’s offices in the country and eroding the rule of law itself.”
At least one Republican lawmaker was critical of the indictment.
“He appears guilty of lying to Congress,” retiring Rep. Don Bacon told NOTUS. “But the president hurt the case by publicly exhorting the AG to prosecute. This mistake will be used for the defense.”
“I find it ironic that Comey was part of the lawfare against Trump and now he’s on the receiving end,” Bacon said. “Lawfare undermines any constitutional republic. This tit for tat and escalation weakens us. It didn’t start with this president but it hasn’t stopped either. “
But for the most part, Republicans were elated at the indictment against Comey, particularly after he posted a cryptic picture of seashells arranged in the shape “86 47.” Many administration allies interpreted “86” to mean “get rid of” and 47 to refer to Trump, the 47th president.
“Comey helped carry out the Trump Russia collusion LIE which cost the American people over $32 million dollars and smeared Pres Trump in his first term,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on X.
“The media sold that lie every single day brainwashing Americans to believe the lie,” she added. “In May, Comey called for Trump to be killed in a social media post with ‘86 47.’”
Rep. Byron Donalds was even more direct.
“His tenure was a stain on the history of our nation,” Donalds posted on X.