The key facts

  • Trump said in a Newsmax interview that he 'could still' launch criminal prosecution of the Clintons and Obama, but gave no details and hinted he is unlikely to do so
  • The US Justice Department has already pursued cases against Letitia James, James Comey, Adam Schiff, Jerome Powell and Lisa Cook; a grand jury declined charges against six Democrats
  • John Bolton pleaded guilty in June to unlawfully retaining classified documents

Statement in Newsmax interview

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he could still seek criminal investigations of former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Barack Obama, claiming he has 'a lot of information' about them. The Hill reported this on Friday, citing Trump's interview with Newsmax host Rob Finnerty. According to Trump, he previously refrained from acting against the three, but 'could still' do so. 'I could go after Hillary Clinton seriously, I could go after Bill Clinton — I love Bill Clinton, after all. I could go after Barack Hussein Obama, I still could. I could do big things if I wanted to. I declined to prosecute Hillary Clinton,' the outlet quoted him as saying.

What Trump meant by 'big things'

When asked to clarify, Trump explained that he could 'prosecute them criminally' or 'destroy their reputations.' He provided no further details of his claims and suggested he would probably not pursue the former officials, adding, before changing the subject, that impeachment proceedings could be launched against him again.

Context: criticism over cases against opponents

The statement came amid criticism of the Trump administration for criminal investigations and prosecutions that, in critics' view, target political opponents. The US Justice Department charged New York State Attorney General Letitia James, who won a civil fraud case against Trump, and twice charged former FBI Director James Comey; the first charge was dismissed after a judge ruled the prosecutor's appointment unlawful. Prosecutors sought to charge six Democratic lawmakers over a video urging service members not to obey unlawful orders, but a grand jury declined the charges. The administration also investigated the activities of Democratic Senator from California Adam Schiff, former Fed Chair Jerome Powell and Fed board member Lisa Cook; the Supreme Court blocked Trump's attempt to remove Cook from her post. Separately, former Trump national security adviser John Bolton pleaded guilty in June to unlawfully retaining classified documents, becoming a former administration official convicted in a case brought by the Justice Department.