Comey Set To Surrender to Law Enforcement

Just yesterday we told you how an indictment was imminent against former Director of the FBI James Comey – and things would probably move fast. Well, Mr. Comey has now officially been indicted on felony charges for making false statements to Congress and for obstructing an official congressional proceeding. He is expected to turn himself in before the week is out.

As reported by the New York Post:

Former FBI Director James Comey was indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday on charges of making false statements and obstruction of justice — and President Trump applauded that “justice in America” is being served nearly a decade after Russiagate.

Comey, 64, is the highest-ranking former federal official to face charges in connection with the long-running FBI investigation into alleged collusion between Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russian officials.

The former top lawman faces up to five years in prison if convicted of both counts. He is expected to turn himself in Friday, according to CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.

As the indictment was coming down, Comey posted a video on social media proclaiming his innocence. He called the charges the “costs to standing up to Donald Trump.” Defiant courage from the man who once reportedly hid in the curtains to avoid being singled out by Trump.

President Trump had a firm response to critics on the Left, calling this action “justice”:

It’s about justice, really, it’s not revenge. It’s also about the fact that you can’t let this go on. They are sick, radical-Left people, and they can’t get away with it, and Comey was one of the people. He wasn’t the biggest, but he’s a dirty cop. He’s always been a dirty cop. Everybody knew it.

My dad, ACLJ Chief Counsel Jay Sekulow, joined us on the broadcast this morning and shared his reaction to the indictment, now that it’s official:

Well, first of all, I think it was probably very wise to just have the two counts, so it’s a very focused indictment. It’s not a scattershot indictment. Sometimes you talk about these talking indictments or speaking indictments; here, it’s very specific. . . . He either lied under oath, or he didn’t. Andrew McCabe said he did. Andrew McCabe was his deputy and [said Comey] lied under oath because he said he was authorized by James Comey to make the leak.

And then you have the second aspect of the leak, which is the one involving the professor who was also, by the way, a special government employee at the Justice Department at the FBI. So look, I think it’s very targeted. So I’ve seen some criticism where people are saying there should have been more. I can’t believe this is enough. No, this was the smart way to do it. It’s very clear. It’s very concise. It’s very direct. Now look, the indictment is the easy part. Trying the case in the Eastern District of Virginia, the rocket docket, as I mentioned yesterday on the broadcast, is going to be another matter. It’s not going to be easy, but I think that this was the right move by the Department of Justice, targeting the narrow scope of the indictment. I think it’s really the right move here.

And lest anyone think the government is being too harsh or making an example of Comey, my dad reminded everyone of just some of Comey’s more pernicious hijinks:

You’ve got to remember what James Comey did throughout all of this, not only what he did to President Trump, but the stuff he did with and the way he handled the Hillary Clinton investigation, and then opened it back up days before the election. So there’s a lot of stuff with James Comey. . . . And we had to deal with this, of course, during the representation of President Trump and during the first impeachment proceedings.

But here’s what you have: James Comey left the meeting of the President of the United States, went into his government vehicle, took out his government computer, typed a memo, and sent it to a professor in New York who then allegedly leaked it to the press. So think about that for a moment. The head of the FBI met with the then-sitting President of the United States, and this is what happened. So it’s outrageous what he did. His conduct was illegal in my view, and I think this indictment – very tailored, very specific, narrow – is the way to approach this case.

Obviously, as quickly as the DOJ would like to expedite this process, it will take some time, and we’ll have to be patient to see justice, as my dad echoed:

It reminds me very similarly of when we were vindicated in our case that we brought against the IRS for targeting the Tea Party a decade ago. And when the case was resolved, you felt like we got justice. . . . It’s the first step, though. There’s going to be a lot of motions and a lot of activity between now and the actual trial, but I do think it was the right step, and I hope the American people and our audience understand it takes time. But the right thing was done here, and the right process is being followed, and we need to now give the Department of Justice the ability to do their job. And of course, we know about this case probably more than any lawyers in America.

Today’s Sekulow broadcast included more analysis of the James Comey indictment, including additional discussion with my dad, ACLJ Chief Counsel Jay Sekulow. We were also joined by our friend and U.S. Special Presidential Envoy Ric Grenell to discuss his surprisingly civil appearance on CBS.

Watch the full broadcast below: