James Comey sounded off on Donald Trump’s “obsession” with him as he faces federal indictment for the second time, blasting the drama as “a little bit humorous.”
“Donald Trump wakes up at three in the morning thinking about me,” the former FBI director told Nicolle Wallace on Monday’s broadcast for MS NOW’s “Deadline: White House.” “The reverse does not happen. But I’m sure that if this case falls apart, they’ll come with something else.”
He added: “I’m going to have to deal with this, as I’ve told my family, they’re going to have to deal with this, as long as Donald Trump is in the White House thinking about me in the middle of the night.”
On rumors suggesting other jurisdictions may be looking into bringing cases against him, Comey said he didn’t know if the chatter was accurate, but noted that the Trump administration will “continue working on it because that’s what the boss wants.”
Later on in the interview, Comey couldn’t help but laugh at his ongoing feud with the president, noting, “Honestly, it’s crazy that I’m at a place where I’m 65 years old — and I actually find it a little bit humorous to have this obsession by this 80-year-old man with me.”
Comey’s comments come nearly two weeks after he was indicted over his “86-47” seashell picture, which saw him accused of threatening the life of the president.
“Look, it’s bad to be indicted,” Comey said of how he and his family are coping amid the new legal drama. “It’s bad when someone you love is indicted, but they’ve kind of gotten used to the fact that, because I’ve been a critic of Donald Trump, I’m a target.”
He continued: “There’s a cost to speaking up in this strange era, awful era we’re in now. I think they accept that. I think they’re proud that I act the way I do. I’m not going to be quiet. I’m going to continue to speak out about what I believe. But, of course, it’s a burden for a family. That to me is a part that I regret, but they’re strong people.”
While Comey refused to get into the specifics of the case out of respect for court rules, he did lay into Trump, accusing the president of having a “bottomless desire to gain revenge” against those who’ve criticized him.
Still, Comey reiterated that he has no plans to stop criticizing Trump, adding, “I think that’s required if you care about America – and so it will just keep going.”
“I am going to continue to speak up because I have grandchildren and someday they will be old enough to understand this time and I want them to know what pop did during this period of time,” he added. “I hope everybody feels that way.”
Watch Comey’s full interview above.
“Deadline: White House” airs weekdays at 4 p.m. ET on MS NOW.
