Joining us now, MSNBC justice and intelligence correspondent Ken Delaney and MSNBC legal correspondent Lisa Rubin, former deputy assistant attorney general Tom Dri and lawfares legal fellow and courts correspondent Anna Bower. Anna had an interesting few days. We're going to get to that in just a moment. Ken, let me start with you. This legal filing, a lot of words, a lot of different ways to say one thing. This case is political retribution and that is illegal under the law. Yeah, that's right, Katie. And ...

John Bolton just made his first court appearance pleading not guilty to charges alleging that he mishandled classified information. Comes after he surrendered to authorities earlier this morning. Just yesterday, Bolton, now a prominent critic of President Trump, was indicted by a federal grand jury.He's charged with eight counts of transmission of national defense information and 10 counts of unlawful retention of that information, 18 counts in all. Let's go right to our senior legal correspondent, Laura Ja ...

Ever since Donald Trump came back into office, he has been asked repeatedly about whether he will indict his political opponents. And just about every time, he's given the same response. >> Are you willing to take this all the way to indictments? >> Well, it's up to Pam Randy, who's doing a terrific job. >> Well, I just want to be fair. It's up ultimately it's up to Pam. I don't want to take a position on it because that's going to be up to Pam. >> It's up to Pam. Is it though? I mean, Attorney General Pam ...

Legal & Judicial Process - The indictment of former FBI director James Comey is based on the findings of a grand jury [1] - The Senate Judiciary Committee launched an active investigation into the subject back in 2020 [1] - The judicial system is trusted to sort out the allegations against Comey [1][2][3][5][6][7][9] - Comey will have his day in court, and if innocent, the charges will be thrown out [1] - A grand jury of 14 members thought pursuing the allegations against Comey was worthwhile [2] Political Context - President Trump publicly pushed for the prosecution of Comey [1] - President Trump has been a vocal critic of James Comey for years, stating he fired Comey because he was a "bad cop" and a "dirty cop" [1] - There are concerns about whether the president is pressuring the Justice Department [3] - The president's past statements and actions suggest a potential political motivation behind the prosecution [1] - The current time is highly charged with political motivations and allegations [8][9]

Legal Analysis of the Comey Indictment - Legal experts and former prosecutors consider the indictment against James Comey exceptionally weak due to fundamental problems with the case and unusual preceding events [1] - The defense may argue vindictive prosecution, citing the president's urging of the Attorney General to pursue the indictment [2][3][4] - Motions for vindictive prosecution rarely succeed, but the president's explicit directives provide strong evidence [5] - James Comey intends to fight the charges and claims innocence [5] Concerns Regarding the Prosecution - The indictment is described as unusually thin, lacking detail [10] - There are suggestions of pressure to secure the indictment, potentially overriding standard prosecutorial practices [4][14] - One legal expert suggests the situation is abnormal, with potential ethical breaches [12][14] - Concerns are raised about the potential for retaliatory prosecutions and the erosion of the rule of law [17] Key Evidence and Testimony - The indictment stems from Comey's 2020 Senate Judiciary Committee testimony where he denied being an anonymous source in news reports [7] - The government argues Comey knew about anonymous leaks, contradicting his testimony [10] - McCabe's testimony is cited, indicating he didn't inform Comey in advance of the leaks [11]

DOJ & White House Scandal - The DOJ is facing a crisis of Trump's own making regarding the potential indictment of James Comey, despite career prosecutors finding no evidence to indict him [1][2] - Trump pushed the attorney general to bring charges against Comey, but some allies expressed reservations about the case [3] - Trump denies involvement in pursuing Comey, contradicting his own words and actions [5][6] - Trump was demanding Bondi move faster in indicting opponents [8] Legal & Ethical Concerns - Bringing cases solely based on Trump's personal demands constitutes selective prosecution, which is illegal in America [13] - The pursuit of Leticia James, the New York Attorney General, is also under scrutiny, raising concerns about unlawful revenge [14][16] - The administration is accused of weaponizing the Department of Justice and criminalizing political foes to scare people out of exercising their lawful right to disagree [28] Broader Implications - The situation is compared to a "Banana Republic" with members of the opposition party being indicted [10] - The pursuit of Comey is seen as a continuation of these "Banana Republic indictments" [21] - The current administration's conduct is categorized as unlawful, a shift from the "lawful but awful" behavior of the first Trump administration [23]

NYC Mayor's Political Stance & Challenges - Mayor Adams defends his record, stating he continued to serve New Yorkers despite facing indictment [4][5] - He believes his indictment was politically motivated due to his stance on migrants and asylum seekers [10][11] - He criticizes the Southern District, alleging they felt sovereign and didn't answer to anyone [14][15] - He acknowledges President Trump's support, who believed the indictment was wrong [16][17] Campaign & Opposition - Mayor Adams is running for reelection, acknowledging low approval ratings and a fractured base [18] - He accuses Andrew Cuomo of intentionally creating another independent line to undermine his run [20] - He describes Zoran Mamdani as an academic elitist whose policies will hurt working-class people [21][22] - He criticizes Mamdani's policies, such as free buses costing $3 billion funded by raising income tax on the top 1% of New Yorkers, which he argues the mayor cannot implement [22] - He addresses the report of Mamdani claiming to be both Asian and African-American on a college application, calling him disingenuous [22][23] Social Issues & Unity - Mayor Adams condemns Islamophobic and racist attacks against Mamdani, emphasizing no place for hate in the city [24][25] - He states his biggest competition is voter apathy and aims to motivate voters by communicating the city's turnaround [27][28]