A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
President Trump's bid to use the justice system to punish his political opponents offered a setback this week. A judge dismissed the indictments against the former FBI director and the New York attorney general, at least for now. But the Trump administration is continuing to use the levers of power to go after its critics. NPR Justice correspondent Carrie Johnson is following this. So, Carrie, the White House and the Justice Department got handed a defeat when the courts ruled that their hand-picked prosecutor in Virginia was not legally appointed, but there is a lot more to this story.
CARRIE JOHNSON, BYLINE: There is. Lindsey Halligan, a former personal lawyer for President Trump, is still working as a prosecutor in the Eastern District of Virginia, even though a federal judge said she was put in the top job there in an illegal way. This process was such a problem that the judge said indictments against the former FBI director Jim Comey and New York Attorney General Tish James had to be dismissed. But the ruling leaves open the idea prosecutors could bring new criminal cases against those prominent critics of President Trump. And this week, the administration doubled down. The Pentagon has launched an investigation of Democratic Senator Mark Kelly, a Navy veteran and astronaut, for public comments he made recently that service members could disobey illegal orders.
MARTÍNEZ: James Comey and Letitia James both made arguments in court that they were targeted because they had investigated Donald Trump. So what happens to those arguments now?
JOHNSON: Typically, it's very hard for defendants to win when they claim they're the victim of selective or vindictive prosecution. But President Trump has publicly directed the Justice Department to investigate them and berated them. Because those indictments have now been dropped, it's doubtful a judge will evaluate those kinds of claims. Both Comey and James suggest they expect the administration to come after them again using the justice system. So judges eventually may have to grapple with those issues.
MARTÍNEZ: But what about the costs of the investigations, I mean, even if the defendants end up winning?
JOHNSON: This is a real and serious problem. Jim Comey referenced it in a video message on Instagram this week.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
JIM COMEY: I was very lucky that some of the best lawyers in America stepped forward to represent me. I hope they serve as an example to more and more lawyers, especially at some of the big firms, to participate in protecting our liberty, protecting the rule of law.
JOHNSON: Comey is referencing how some big law firms this year have settled with the Trump administration or shied away from representing certain clients because they were worried about how the White House might react. These investigations are really expensive. They put people through the wringer emotionally. So there's a real cost to fighting these kinds of cases, and that may be part of the strategy the Trump administration's pursuing.
MARTÍNEZ: What if there are other people out there that the president is not keen on should they be worried?
JOHNSON: Well, there are hints the Justice Department is not close to being done with investigating people Trump does not like. Grand jury subpoenas have gone out in Florida to intelligence and law enforcement officials who served in prior Democratic administrations. Mike Davis, a close ally of the president, said on social media this week the DOJ should appeal the ruling that dropped cases against Comey and James. And he said prosecutors must move aggressively to bring charges against others he calls lawfare Democrats. He says there's an investigation coming in Fort Pierce, Florida. The main judge in that courthouse, of course, is Aileen Cannon. She dismissed the classified documents case against Donald Trump a few years ago.
MARTÍNEZ: That's NPR justice correspondent Carrie Johnson. Carrie, thanks.
JOHNSON: Thanks for having me. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
