The indictment of former FBI Director James Comey marked the first criminal charges to be brought against a political adversary of the president – but many fear they will not be the last.
President Trump has a long list of perceived enemies, and he hasn’t been shy about repeatedly calling for their prosecution, telling reporters in the wake of Comey’s indictment, “I hope there will be others.”
“It’s not a list, but I think there will be others. They’re corrupt,” Trump said Friday when asked, “who is the next person on your list in your retribution campaign?”
“It’s about justice,” he added.
Democrats and legal experts made clear they see the Comey case as laying the groundwork for charges against other Trump foes, including those recently listed by Trump in a post calling on Attorney General Pam Bondi to bring charges as “we can’t delay any longer.”
“The Department of Justice has become a political tool of a vengeful president,” Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.), the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Friday.
“President Trump wears his corruption like a badge of honor and defies anyone daring to challenge him,” he added, adding that Bondi has complied with Trump’s directives.
For some former prosecutors, the case highlights an erosion of the independence of the Department of Justice as well as the requirement to bring thoroughly vetted cases.
The grand jury that reviewed the case rejected one proposed charge before approving one related to making false statements to Congress and another for obstruction of a congressional proceeding. Both related to testimony he gave in 2020 regarding the 2016 election. Comey has denied any wrongdoing.
“It’s a very disturbing moment in our country’s history. A president demanded an indictment of one of his enemies, someone he repeatedly ridiculed and vilified in public statements and social media posts, and he got it. He got it even though career prosecutors who had worked on the case didn’t believe the evidence met the standard for obtaining an indictment,” Joyce Vance, who served as a U.S. attorney under former President Obama, wrote on her blog.
“In some ways, important ones, today’s news is about Jim Comey. But really, it’s about Donald Trump. It’s about a president who wants to abuse the power of government and make himself unstoppable.”
Those close to the White House, however, defended the prosecution, forecasting there would be more to follow.
“Dear Lawfare Democrats: I bet you anything the rest of you are indicted by the end of February,” said Mike Davis, a conservative lawyer who has advised the White House on judicial appointments.
Prosecutors already have a long list of active investigations into Trump’s targets, something critics see as a weaponization of the Department of Justice the president has long railed against.
The FBI last month searched the home and office of Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton after securing a warrant based on suspicions he may have retained classified records and other sensitive material as he was preparing a memoir.
Several outlets reported Friday that Espionage Act charges against Bolton are expected imminently.
And the Justice Department is also already probing three other Trump adversaries on allegations related to mortgage fraud: Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who led Trump’s first impeachment and served on the Jan. 6 committee; New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), who won a civil case against Trump’s business; and Federal Reserve board of governors member Lisa Cook, a player in Trump’s efforts to pressure the Fed to lower interest rates.
All three have said the investigations are politically motivated and denied any wrongdoing in connection with the mortgages, the details of which were referred to the Justice Department by Trump ally Bill Pulte, who oversees the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
Following the Comey indictment, the Democratic Attorneys General Association launched a legal defense fund to support James as well as any other Democratic attorneys general targeted by Trump, saying they expect such attacks to “escalate” as Trump has “demonstrated his eagerness to ignore the law and target anyone who disagrees with him.”
Beyond those with the specter of a criminal case hanging over them, Trump has a long list of people he’s said should be prosecuted, including former special counsel Jack Smith; the “entire Biden crime family”; former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; former Vice President Kamala Harris; Fulton County, Ga., District Attorney Fani Willis (D); Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D); former Attorney General Merrick Garland; and Democratic megadonor George Soros.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe said he made criminal referrals to the Justice Department in the wake of a review of the intelligence community’s handling of the 2016 election, implying charges could be brought against former CIA Director John Brennan and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.
Democrats see a troubling pattern in the way charges against Comey unfolded — details that would also be relevant for any charges filed against James.
Last Friday the U.S. attorney who had been overseeing both cases, Erik Siebert, resigned under pressure from the Trump administration to quickly bring charges, reportedly unsure there was sufficient evidence.
Trump quickly replaced Siebert with Lindsey Halligan, a former member of his personal legal team who previously worked in insurance law and has never tried a federal case.
The Comey case was then sped before a grand jury in order to beat the ticking clock on a five-year statute of limitations set to run out on Comey’s Sept. 30 appearance before the Senate.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said Halligan’s appointment tainted the case and would also raise questions about the legitimacy of any action taken against James.
“Today, after firing his own choice for U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, Donald Trump finally got a subservient new replacement to carry out his revenge prosecution against former FBI Director James Comey by bringing baseless criminal charges against him,” he said in a statement.
He described Halligan as someone “who has literally no prosecutorial experience but is clearly willing to blindly carry out the president’s orders and was willing to file “the exact baseless charges against Mr. Comey that her predecessor had rejected.”
“The rule of law was supposed to replace vendettas, blood feuds, and mad kings exacting vengeance on their perceived enemies. This sordid episode is one more savage assault on justice in America,” Raskin said.
For his part, Comey is defending himself from the allegations he lied about his involvement in media leaks related to the 2016 election. A 2018 inspector general report sided with Comey’s account of the matter.
“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,” Comey said in a Thursday night video.
“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.”
White House officials have defended the move.
Bondi borrowed a line from Democrats when acknowledging the indictment, saying on social platform X, “No one is above the law.”
And FBI Director Kash Patel, who was heavily involved in pushing back against the 2016 investigation into the Trump campaign as a House Intelligence Committee Republican staffer, defended the bureau’s role in the case.
“Career FBI agents, intel analysts, and staff led the investigation into Comey and others. They called the balls and strikes and will continue to do so. The wildly false accusations attacking this FBI for the politicization of law enforcement comes from the same bankrupt media that sold the world on Russia Gate- it’s hypocrisy on steroids,” he wrote on X.
Many GOP lawmakers also defended the move.
“James Comey was not indicted because Donald Trump doesn’t like him,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), whose exchanges during the 2020 hearing are the basis for the charges, wrote on X.
“Comey demonstrated complete arrogance and unwillingness to comply with the law.”
Beyond charges for individuals, the Trump administration is also already eyeing investigations for groups that challenge the president’s agenda.
A Justice Department official sent a letter to a half dozen U.S. attorney offices calling for investigations into the Soros-backed Open Society Foundations, even listing possible charges such as arson and material support of terrorism.
Open Society Foundations funds nonprofits across the globe working on justice and human rights issues, though much of its work in the U.S. is dedicated to strengthening democracy. It denied any connection with terrorism.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) saw the two as connected and a broader attack on free speech, particularly when it confronts Trump.
“This is a very dangerous moment. The president is also going after other critics and political adversaries. He’s talking about going after the Soros foundation. He’s talked about going after Adam Schiff. This is a lawless administration. We just had this episode where they were using government power to crack down on free speech,” he said during an appearance on CNN.
Trump, meanwhile, has not been shy in sharing how he feels about his adversaries, using his time at Charlie Kirk’s funeral to say, “I hate my opponents, and I don’t want the best for them.”
Brett Samuels contributed.