Donald Trump urged Republicans in Congress early Wednesday to "defund" the Department of Justice and the FBI "until they come to their senses."
He cited the two federal agencies in a post on his Truth Social account the day after he was arraigned in Manhattan on a 34-count felony indictment charging him with falsifying business records related to hush money paid to a porn star and others.
While the two federal agencies had no direct involvement in the case, which was brought by a local district attorney in New York, the agencies are involved in other Trump investigations. And Trump's post aimed to make a broader point about the "weaponization" of law enforcement across the board:
REPUBLICANS IN CONGRESS SHOULD DEFUND THE DOJ AND FBI UNTIL THEY COME TO THEIR SENSES. THE DEMOCRATS HAVE TOTALLY WEAPONIZED LAW ENFORCEMENT IN OUR COUNTRY AND ARE VICIOUSLY USING THIS ABUSE OF POWER TO INTERFERE WITH OUR ALREADY UNDER SIEGE ELECTIONS!
Trump's forceful post came after the judge who handled his arraignment in Manhattan Supreme Court, Juan Merchan, cautioned the former president Tuesday against using inflammatory rhetoric in his social media posts.
Some other Republicans have expressed sentiments similar to Trump's.
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, on Sunday called for Congress to "limit funds going to some of these agencies" in response to Trump's treatment.
Last summer, Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., also suggested"defunding some of these bad agencies. The FBI. The DOJ."
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is another leading proponent of "defunding" the FBI.
And Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., last month told a conservative gathering, "We either get this government back on our side or we defund and get rid of, abolish the FBI, the CDC, ATF, DOJ, every last one of them if they do not come to heel."
Trump's attack on federal law enforcement came 10 minutes after a post focusing directly on the New York case, in which he said the indictment "has no merit," noting that the statute of limitations has expired:
Almost every legal and political analyst has said that the unfair and morally disgusting Indictment filed against me yesterday has NO MERIT, and is not even a case. There was no crime and, anyway, the Statute of Limitations has been violated by many years.
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