President Trump says he doesn’t know if former FBI director James Comey will be indicted.
Comey: Trump would be charged with obstruction if he wasn’t the president
Former FBI director James Comey said President Trump would have been charged with obstruction if he were not the president during the CNN Town Hall broadcast.
USA TODAY
President Donald Trump said he doesn’t know if former FBI director James Comey will face criminal charges after urging prosecutors to pursue the charges just five days ago.
“I don’t know what will happen because I don’t know,” Trump said on September 25th. He can make a decision for the prosecutor and he can get involved, but he won’t go.
“I really don’t choose to do that,” Trump said.
According to multiple news reports, the Justice Department is considering whether to pursue a former FBI director and key Trump critics ahead of the September 30 deadline.
Trump said “very professional people” including Attorney General Pam Bondy and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche will decide on criminal charges.
“I can only say Comey is a bad person,” Trump added. “He’s a sick guy. I think he’s actually a sick guy. He did something horrible with the FBI. I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Comey’s lawyer could not be immediately contacted for comment.
What potential claims did the prosecutor see?
The potential accusations reported by the New York Times and the Washington Post were related to whether Comey lied to Congress when he effectively testified on September 30, 2020, but Covid-19-related restrictions were in place. Much of his testimony focused on the FBI’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, which benefited Trump. In the end, special advisor Robert Mueller concluded there was no sufficient evidence that Trump’s campaign was coordinated with Russia.
Scotty Howell, a spokesman for the U.S. Lawyer’s Office in the Eastern District of Virginia, declined to comment on the news reports regarding the possibility of Comey’s charges.
After hearing the evidence from the prosecutor, the actual indictment must ultimately be supported by a large ju judge.
Trump publicly pressured prosecutors to pursue accusations against Comey
The question of whether Comey will be charged comes after obvious pressure from Trump when the deadline approaches. Federal law places a general five-year limit on bringing criminal charges of lying to Congress. The five-year deadline comes on Tuesday, September 30th.
In a post on the True Society on September 20th, Trump publicly addressed Attorney General Pam Bondy, who said Comey “sinned like hell.” “We can’t delay it anymore,” Trump said, “Justice must be provided now!!!”
In another post the same day as that post, Trump said he had fired Eric Sheebert, who had recently served as a US lawyer for the Eastern District of Virginia. By way of explanation, the president argued that Sheebert was supported by a Democratic senator in Virginia and “he never intended to do his job.”
Trump quickly appointed his former defense attorney, Lindsay Harrigan, to replace Sheebert. Harrigan has no previous experience as a prosecutor.
