Trump's New DOJ Lackeys' Bogus Indictment of James Comey Violates the First Amendment to Advance His Retribution Agenda

Donald Trump has had to burn through a lot of Justice Department officials because they wouldn’t set their reputations on fire to pursue a petty revenge campaign against people he perceives as his political opponents. But now he has found enough pliant lackeys to file a second bogus indictment of former FBI Director James Comey.

CNN reports:

Former FBI Director James Comey was indicted Tuesday over a photo of seashells officials said threatened President Donald Trump, marking the administration’s second attempt to prosecute one of his biggest political opponents, three sources first told CNN.

The charges, approved by a grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina where Comey allegedly took the photo, include making a threat against the president and transmitting a threat in interstate commerce, according to court documents. …

The new case represents a reinvigorated effort to satisfy Trump’s demands to investigate his own foes, including Comey, who he sees as a key leader in the perceived effort to “weaponize” the justice system against him.

It also comes less than a month after the president dismissed Attorney General Pam Bondi. Trump had for weeks complained that Bondi was not aggressive enough in executing his agenda. …

Tuesday’s indictment is centered on a picture Comey posted on social media last May, of shells on a beach writing out the numbers “86 47.” He wrote in the caption, “Cool shell formation on my beach walk.” …

When used as slang, the number 86 can refer to getting rid of or tossing something out. Trump is currently the 47th president.

If “86” is what the lawyers call a “true threat,” then as CNN observes elsewhere, a lot of people are in trouble. But of course it’s not a threat of violence. This is a lie invented to punish someone Trump doesn’t like. The charade of having to pretend to debate this shows how Trump is attempting to distort, not just the legal system, but the very process of public debate.

The Executive Watch is a project of the Institute for the Study of Modern Authoritarianism, and its flagship publication The UnPopulist, to track in an ongoing way the abuses of the power of the American presidency. It sorts these abuses into five categories: Personal Grift, Political Corruption, Presidential Retribution, Power Consolidation, and Policy Illegality. Click the category of interest to get an overview of all the abuses under it.

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