Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) appeared on Meet the Press Sunday, where he staunchly defended the federal indictments of New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey, rejecting suggestions that the Justice Department is being improperly directed to target President Donald Trump’s political enemies.
The exclusive interview focused on the recent criminal charges, with the host referencing a private message intended for Attorney General Pam Bondi and directly questioning the propriety of the President publicly calling for the indictment of those he views as adversaries.
“I think it’s appropriate for a Comey to answer for his conduct five years ago,” Senator Graham asserted. He specifically cited a contentious 2020 hearing where he questioned the former FBI Director about intelligence suggesting Hillary Clinton’s campaign was allegedly fabricating the narrative of collusion between Russia and Trump.
“The man who created the [false narrative]… they kept using the document to get warrants. So, yeah, I think the grand jury is doing the right thing,” Graham said.
When pressed on whether the President publicly urging his Attorney General to “indite whoever he says” crossed a line concerning the Justice Department’s independence from the Executive Branch, Senator Graham turned the focus back on the current President’s critics.
“Justice Department in the hands of [the last administration] crossed every line there is to cross,” Graham claimed, before offering an inaccurate figure regarding the President’s own legal troubles. “Trump got indicted 91 times, three days after he announced president… 91 indictments and foreign jurisdictions.” The President currently faces multiple state and federal indictments with a high, but lower, number of criminal counts.
Host Kristen Welker pushed the Senator to address the current administration’s actions. “I’m asking about right now, and this sitting president’s actions right now,” the host insisted, pointing out that both James and Comey were indicted by a grand jury after the President publicly called for their prosecution.
Senator Graham remained dismissive of the political concerns, stating that the public outcry was misplaced. “You didn’t care any about this. He didn’t care that [Letitia] James made up charges that no one’s ever faced,” he said, referencing the New York AG’s civil fraud lawsuit against the President’s business.
James was recently charged with bank fraud and making false statements related to a mortgage application for a Virginia property, two weeks after Comey was indicted on charges of lying to Congress. Both have denied wrongdoing and accused the administration of political retribution.
Graham wrapped up the segment by criticizing the Special Counsel’s work in the other federal cases against the President. “Special Council Jack Smith introduced his brief against Trump, October, the 24th, before the [last] election, violating every protocol just to politicize the election,” Graham claimed.
He concluded his defense of the current prosecutions with a defiant message: “This may bother you that people are being held like [James and Comey]. It doesn’t bother me one damn bit.”
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