Democrats melted down Tuesday over the second indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, blasting the charges as politically motivated and claiming they reflect a weaponized Department of Justice.
“Different Trump defense lawyer running the DOJ, same old story. Weaponized justice. Vindictive prosecutions. Catering to an audience of one. Perverting the rule of law, one enemy at a time,” Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) bemoaned on social media.
Different Trump defense lawyer running the DOJ, same old story.
Weaponized justice. Vindictive prosecutions. Catering to an audience of one.
Perverting the rule of law, one enemy at a time. pic.twitter.com/9APAlbbuqj
— Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) April 28, 2026
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) questioned the quality of the FBI investigation, calling it a “loser case.”
“Did agents print out the seashells picture and look at it upside down? Send it for DNA testing? [Acting Attorney General Todd] Blanche is bringing this loser case again to kiss trump’s (sic) ass,” he wrote.
This is an asinine statement by @DAGToddBlanche, that there was “a lot of work by law enforcement over the past year.”
Did agents print out the seashells picture and look at it upside down? Send it for DNA testing?
Blanche is bringing this loser case again to kiss trump’s ass. https://t.co/PQQxNUToJb
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) April 28, 2026
Illinois Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker escalated the criticism, slamming President Donald Trump as an “authoritarian” and accusing his administration of stripping Americans of their rights.
“The president, on the other hand, is literally using the Department of Justice to take people to prison. He is indicting people and prosecuting people for no reason other than they are his opponents. So there’s a big difference in what each side is doing here,” Pritzker said in an interview with NBC.
“It may take us a couple of years, in fact, to go after people like Kash Patel, like Kristi Noem, like Tom Homan, like Greg Bovino, but we are coming after them,” he added.
Today on Meet the Press Now, JB Pritzker calls President Trump an “authoritarian, and if we are not pushing back every single day, then we’re doing it wrong.”
A few seconds later, Pritzker threatens Trump admin officials: “It may take us a couple of years, in fact, to go after… pic.twitter.com/UxrRHq1L6R
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) April 28, 2026
Mark Elias, a prominent Democratic attorney, warned the case signals a lasting shift at the Justice Department.
“We’re not talking about indicting a ham sandwich. We’re literally talking about indicting someone over seashells on the beach. Who knows what’s going to happen? Who knows who they’ll go after next?” Elias said on MSNOW.
🚨 NOW: Leftist cheating election lawyer Marc Elias WARNS of possible DOJ RETRIBUTION if Democrats take power again
Elias is known for MASS SUING Republican laws that safeguard elections — and is also targeting Florida
VOTE AGAINST THEM IN NOVEMBER! pic.twitter.com/tTyzPQrsFu
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) April 28, 2026
The outrage comes after a federal grand jury returned a two-count felony indictment and arrest warrant against Comey, accusing him of making threats to kill or harm President Trump and transmitting those threats across state lines using social media.
The controversy centers on a provocative Instagram post shared by the former FBI chief last year. Comey’s photo showed seashells arranged to form the numbers “86” and “47″ on a North Carolina beach. In the restaurant world, “86” generally means to take out or eliminate, and “47” was a presumptive reference to Trump, the 47th president of the United States.
In a video posted to his Substack, Comey denied any wrongdoing.
“Well, they’re back. This time, about a picture of seashells on a North Carolina Beach a year ago, and this won’t be the end of it, but nothing has changed with me. I’m still innocent, I’m still not afraid, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary, so let’s go,” Comey said.
