Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer said Sunday that he has a deep distrust in President Trump’s handling of the justice system following the indictment of former FBI Director James B. Comey.
“I have no faith in Donald Trump’s judicial system,” Mr. Schumer, New York Democrat, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “He has turned this judicial system to be his own political fighter, do what he wants politically, so that he tells them to go after people he doesn’t like.”
The indictment, handed down Thursday by a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, charges Mr. Comey with lying to Congress and obstruction of justice.
The charges stem from his 2020 testimony regarding the Trump-Russia collusion investigation, which began under Mr. Comey’s leadership at the FBI.
Democrats have denounced the indictment as politically motivated.
It came after Mr. Trump had pressured Attorney General Pam Bondi to take action against Mr. Comey and other political rivals. It also came shortly after Erik Siebert, the acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, resigned over his refusal to pursue charges against Mr. Comey.
In Mr. Siebert’s place, Mr. Trump appointed Lindsey Halligan, a White House aide with limited prosecutorial experience. Ms. Halligan swiftly presented the case to the grand jury, racing to meet a five-year deadline for filing charges related to Mr. Comey’s alleged false statements.
According to Mr. Schumer, the case against Mr. Comey had previously stalled due to a lack of sufficient evidence.
“So he fired the prosecutor and installed someone who would do his bidding,” Mr. Schumer said. “Trump has done many things to erode our democracy and norms — this is among the worst.”
Republicans, however, have rallied behind the indictment.
House Speaker Mike Johnson defended Mr. Trump’s actions, accusing Mr. Comey of spearheading what he called the “total and utter weaponization of the Department of Justice.”
“They, quite literally, for four years under the Biden administration, turned the entire apparatus for a judicial system against one person. His name’s Donald Trump,” Mr. Johnson said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
“If he lied to Congress about what he knew and when he knew it, then that is a matter that transcends politics,” the House speaker said. “I think he has to be tried for that.”
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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