Donald Trump has never hidden his desire to exact retribution on those he claims have “wronged” him.
On the campaign trail last year, he issued a particularly ominous threat to his political foes. “Well, revenge does take time. I will say that,” he said in an interview with Dr Phil. “And sometimes revenge can be justified.”
It appears Trump has always been this way. Nearly 20 years ago, as his television career had taken off on The Apprentice, the real estate mogul made clear how he responds to being “screwed.”
“Go for the jugular” and “always get even,” Trump penned in his book Think Big and Kick Ass: In Business and in Life, POLITICO’s Playbook noted Friday.
“When you are in business, you need to get even with people who screw you. You need to screw them back 15 times harder,” the president said. “You do it not only to get the person who messed with you, but also to show the others who are watching what will happen to them if they mess with you.”
Now, nine months into his second term, that business mantra has been applied to Trump’s politics as he appears to have stepped up the campaign to punish his adversaries.
In a Truth Social post Saturday, Trump told Attorney General Pam Bondi: “We can’t delay any longer.”
Action soon followed. Former FBI director James Comey, who has long been in the president’s crosshairs, was indicted Thursday by Trump’s Department of Justice on charges of making a false statement to Congress and obstructing its proceedings.
“JUSTICE IN AMERICA!” Trump celebrated after the news broke.
On his way to the Ryder Cup Friday morning on Long Island, Trump said Comey’s case is “about justice,” not revenge.
“It’s not a list, but I think there’ll be others,” he said.
His critics say that Trump is now “totally out of control.”
“Donald Trump and his sycophants in the Department of Justice are completely and totally out of control,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Thursday in a statement, accusing Trump and the department of “viciously weaponiz[ing] the criminal justice system against their perceived adversaries.”
“The Justice Department we have long known is dead,” Obama administration DOJ veteran Matthew Miller told Playbook.
So who is next on Trump’s infamous “Enemies List?”
John Bolton – the former national security adviser
John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser-turned fierce critic, could likely be next.
His home in Bethesda, Maryland, was raided by the FBI in August in search of classified documents and he has not been charged with a crime.
But according to CNN, senior Justice Department leaders want to bring a charge as soon as today. Others are concerned, however, that they could build a stronger case if they wait until the end of the year.
“An attorney from the deputy attorney general’s office has been pressing the Maryland US attorney’s office this week to charge Bolton on or before Friday, according to the sources,” the network reports.
Bolton’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, has said that “an objective and thorough review will show nothing inappropriate was stored or kept” by the former Trump administration official.
Trump announced he had tapped Bolton for the role of national security advisor in his first administration in March 2018. But their relationship quickly soured, culminating in a social media post by Trump in September 2019, announcing that Bolton had been fired. The president said he “disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration.”
Since then, Bolton has emerged as an outspoken Trump critic on the airwaves and in his 2020 memoir The Room Where it Happened, which described Trump as uninformed about foreign policy.
Adam Schiff and Letitia James – the Dem senator and the NY AG who prosecuted Trump
Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff of California and New York Attorney General Letitia James were mentioned in Trump’s Truth Social post to Bondi, ramping up the pressure to investigate.
“Nothing is being done,” Trump fumed. “What about Comey, Adam “Shifty” Schiff, Leticia??? They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done.”
As chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Schiff led the first impeachment push against Trump during his first term. In July, Trump said in a Truth Social post that Schiff was in “Big Trouble” and should be sent to prison.
Schiff is currently under federal criminal investigation for alleged mortgage fraud. The Federal Housing Finance Agency sent a criminal referral to the Justice Department in May, alleging the senator had falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable terms from lenders.
The complaint concerned Schiff listing two different properties as his primary residence at other times: one in his district in Burbank, California, and one in Montgomery County, Maryland, for his family’s use when Congress is in session.
An attorney for Schiff said the allegations were “transparently false, stale, and long debunked.”
“Since I led his first impeachment, Trump has repeatedly called for me to be arrested for treason. So in a way, I guess this is a bit of a letdown,” Schiff responded. “And this baseless attempt at political retribution won’t stop me from holding him accountable. Not by a long shot.”
James, meanwhile, is under investigation for allegedly committing mortgage fraud, which she denies.
New York’s top law enforcement official led the three-year investigation and lawsuit which accused Trump and his associates of fraudulently convincing banks and lenders to give them favorable financing terms based on bogus and inflated financial statements. After a bench trial in civil court, Trump, his companies and trust were ordered to pay the state more than $354 million.
But last month, an appeals court decision on Thursday determined that the financial verdict from New York Justice Arthur Engoron was “excessive,” handing Trump a huge victory.
Trump demanded the mortgage fraud investigation into James move forward, despite prosecutors failing to uncover clear evidence, Bloomberg reported this week.
In a statement to the outlet, the Justice Department said it is “continuing—not reviving” the investigation into James.
“Generally this Department of Justice will vigorously pursue justice against anyone who commits fraud against the American taxpayer,” the statement said. “We treat every referral with the utmost seriousness.”
Lisa Cook – the Fed Reserve governor
No president has fired a sitting Federal Reserve governor in the agency’s 112-year history, but Trump is attempting to do just that.
The administration has accused Lisa Cook of committing mortgage fraud in an unprecedented bid to reshape the Fed board, designed to be largely independent from politics. Cook has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime.
If Trump is successful, Cook would be replaced and the board would give his appointees the majority.
Cook fought back in a Supreme Court filing Thursday, arguing that ruling for Trump would “sound the death knell for the central-bank independence” and transform the Federal Reserve “into a body subservient to the President’s will.”
George Soros – the liberal billionaire philanthropist
Top Justice Department officials are reportedly demanding federal prosecutors across the country launch investigations into billionaire philanthropist George Soros and his Open Society Foundations.
Trump has baselessly alleged that Soros and his Open Society Foundations support “violent protest.”
This week, a lawyer for the office of deputy attorney general Todd Blanche — who also served as Trump’s personal criminal defense attorney — directed U.S. attorney’s offices in California, New York and Washington, D.C., among other places, to open a criminal case against Open Society Foundations.
The directive from Justice Department lawyer Aakash Singh suggests a wide range of charges, including racketeering, arson, wire fraud and material support for terrorism, according to a copy of the directive obtained by The New York Times.
A spokesperson for the Justice Department would not comment to The Independent on potential investigations but stated that the attorney general “is committed to the safety of every American.”
In a statement to The Independent, a spokesperson for Open Society Foundations said they “unequivocally condemn terrorism and do not fund terrorism.”
Jimmy Kimmel – the late-night talk show host
An anomaly on the list is late-night show comedian Jimmy Kimmel for making a comeback this week after ABC previously suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Kimmel’s show was taken off the air “indefinitely” for making “insensitive” comments about the killing of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, incensing the president and the MAGA movement. Kimmel apologized for the remarks.
His suspension sparked a massive debate over free speech, with celebrities, politicians, and several current and former late-night talk show hosts voicing their outrage.
Disney, the parent company of ABC, said it reinstated the show after having “thoughtful conversations with Jimmy.”
Though Kimmel and the network doesn’t look as though he is out of the woods yet.
“He is yet another arm of the DNC and, to the best of my knowledge, that would be a major Illegal Campaign Contribution,” Trump raged after Kimmel’s return Tuesday.
“I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million Dollars. This one sounds even more lucrative.”
Alex Woodward contributed reporting
