Former FBI director and longtime Donald Trump critic James Comey has been indicted on two counts, US media reported Thursday, marking the latest escalation in the president’s campaign of legal action against political adversaries. Comey faces charges of making false statements and obstruction of justice. The indictment follows Trump’s public call earlier this week for Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue charges against Comey and other officials. “No one is above the law,” Bondi said on X after the indictment was announced, without naming Comey. “Today’s indictment reflects this Department of Justice’s commitment to holding those who abuse positions of power accountable for misleading the American people. We will follow the facts in this case.” The indictment was filed by Lindsey Halligan, a former personal lawyer to Trump who was appointed US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia just days earlier. Halligan has no prior prosecutorial experience. She replaced Erik Siebert, who resigned last week after reportedly telling Justice Department leaders there was insufficient evidence to charge Comey or New York Attorney General Letitia James. James and other Democratic officials have been accused by Trump allies, including Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte, of falsifying mortgage documents. Comey was dismissed by Trump in 2017 during an investigation into possible collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia during the 2016 election. His indictment comes amid a broader crackdown on critics, including former national security advisor John Bolton, whose home and office were raided in August as part of a classified documents probe. Bolton has angered Trump with his memoir, The Room Where it Happened, and frequent public criticism of the president, calling him “unfit to be president.” Since returning to office in January, Trump has taken punitive steps against perceived opponents, including stripping former officials of security clearances, targeting law firms that handled past cases against him, and cutting federal funding to certain universities. Trump himself has faced multiple investigations. The FBI raided his Mar-a-Lago residence in 2022 over classified documents, and Special Counsel Jack Smith charged him with trying to overturn the 2020 election results. Neither case went to trial, and Smith dropped both after Trump’s victory in the 2024 election, citing Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president.
