WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump intended his recent Truth Social post imploring Attorney General Pam Bondi to take legal action against his opponents as a direct message, according to a Trump administration official.
Trump was surprised to learn he had actually posted the message to his Truth Social account, the source said, adding that the president reacted by saying "Oh," and then tried to shrug it off.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that Trump meant the post as a direct message.
The lengthy post on Sept. 20 addressed Bondi as "Pam" and expressed frustration that "nothing is being done" to his foes.
"What about Comey, Adam 'Shifty' Schiff, Leticia???" he wrote, referring to former FBI Director James Comey, Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and New York Attorney General Letitia James.
"They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done," he claimed, adding, "We can't delay any longer, it's killing our reputation and credibility."
"They impeached me twice, and indicted me (5 times!), OVER NOTHING. JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!" his post concluded.
Two of the three people mentioned in the post — Comey and James — have now been indicted by the Justice Department. Two administration officials told NBC News in August that Bondi had appointed a "special attorney" to investigate mortgage fraud allegations against James and Schiff.
James was indicted on Thursday by a federal grand jury, charged with one count of bank fraud and one count of making false statements to a financial institution.
The prosecutions and investigations of Trump's rivals have raised concerns from legal experts and critics about his use of the Justice Department for potential retribution and the damage that could cause to the rule of law.
James secured a nearly half-billion-dollar civil fraud judgment against Trump and his companies last year, which was recently overturned and is on appeal. She denied the charges against her, saying they were "baseless" and driven by "political retribution."
Her attorney, Abbe Lowell, said Thursday that the case is “driven by President Trump’s desire for revenge,” adding, “When a president can publicly direct charges to be filed against someone — when it was reported that career attorneys concluded none were warranted — it marks a serious attack on the rule of law."
Trump's pressure on Bondi contradicts his previous claims that he has not become involved in investigations against his rivals or Justice Department charging decisions. After Comey was charged, for example, Trump told reporters at the White House that he had "nothing to do with the case."
"I don’t call anybody. You know what? I’m allowed to do that if I wanted to do that," Trump said, going on to repeat the allegation that Comey had "lied" and "got caught."
Trump was referring to congressional testimony that the then-FBI director gave in 2017 denying he had authorized a leak to the news media about an FBI investigation into the Clinton Foundation.
Comey pleaded not guilty this week to charges that he had made a false statement to Congress and obstructed a congressional proceeding. He said after the charges were filed that there are "costs to standing up to Donald Trump," adding that he has "great confidence in the federal judicial system."
Referring to Comey's indictment, Schiff said in an interview on NBC News' “Meet the Press”: “If Republicans allow this to go on for four years, there will be nothing left of our democracy.”
"He’s described me as the enemy within," Schiff said, referring to Trump. "He’s described other Democratic elected officials as the enemy within. He is using the Justice Department to go after his political enemies, and he’s using the Justice Department to protect his political friends. … This should concern every American, not just those he’s tweeting about like myself."
Schiff served as the lead impeachment manager in the House during Trump's first impeachment trial nearly six years ago. He has denied any wrongdoing in response to the Trump administration's investigation into mortgage fraud allegations.
Asked if he is concerned that he could be charged next, Schiff said: "Those of us on the president’s enemies list — and it is a long and growing list — will not be intimidated, we will not be deterred. We will do our jobs, we will stand up to this president.”
In addition to bringing charges against the president's rivals, the Trump administration has purged officials at the Justice Department and FBI, including recently firing special agents who worked with special counsel Jack Smith's office in investigations into Trump, sources told NBC this week.
The administration's moves have drawn fire from Justice Department officials and others. In a recent letter obtained by NBC, 42 retired judges warned that the case against Comey shows the “rights and liberties of every American are in grave danger."
Trump was "corruptly" abusing the power of his office "by directing the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to target his critics and his perceived political enemies for investigation and criminal prosecution,” they argued.
