Trump melted down into an insane tirade on Twitter where he is personally attacking former FBI Director James Comey and calling him a slimeball and calling for his prosecution.
Trump tweeted:
James Comey is a proven LEAKER & LIAR. Virtually everyone in Washington thought he should be fired for the terrible job he did-until he was, in fact, fired. He leaked CLASSIFIED information, for which he should be prosecuted. He lied to Congress under OATH. He is a weak and…..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 13, 2018
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….untruthful slime ball who was, as time has proven, a terrible Director of the FBI. His handling of the Crooked Hillary Clinton case, and the events surrounding it, will go down as one of the worst “botch jobs†of history. It was my great honor to fire James Comey!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 13, 2018
When Trump says prosecute, he means prison
Trump was saying that Comey is criminal who should be prosecuted. The president’s tweets were a classic example of Trump projecting what he has done on to others. It is Trump who has leaked classified information, repeatedly including to the Russians. It is also Trump who being investigated for obstruction of justice and other potential crimes. Trump wants to put Comey in prison because the former FBI director had the nerve to speak out and tell the truth in a book about his behavior. James Comey wouldn’t be a lackey, so Trump is trying to punish him.
Trump wants to use Department of Justice as his personal weapon
Another deeply troubling aspect of Trump’s tweets is that he is trying to use the DOJ to prosecute someone who he views as an enemy. On Thursday, Trump said that he would stay in office for 16 years if Congress would change the law. Conservatives immediately howled that Trump was joking, but Trump’s statement was based on his own authoritarian tendencies. This president believes that he is above the law and that he is the government.
The personal attacks have become standard for Trump, but it is the un-democratic view of presidential power that should infuriate every American.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
