James Comey responds to indictment, Trump's 'anti-weaponization' fund for allies
"I am not just not guilty, I am innocent," Comey said.
Former FBI Director James Comey, in an appearance on "Good Morning America" on Monday, maintained his innocence after being indicted by the Trump Justice Department for a second time and bashed the administration's plan to create a "anti-weaponization" fund for the president's allies.
Comey told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos he could not discuss details of the case against him, but said: "I am not just not guilty, I am innocent, and I have amazing lawyers who are also my friends, so we will do our absolute best in a courtroom. And I feel good about it."
A federal grand jury in North Carolina indicted Comey last month over a controversial Instagram post from 2025 shared a picture showing the numbers "86 47" written in seashells on the beach with the caption, "Cool shell formation on my beach walk."
Citing the slang meaning of "86" as to "nix" or "get rid" of something, President Donald Trump and his allies allege that the post was a veiled threat against the 47th president. Comey has said he was unaware that the post could be associated with violence. His attorneys have indicated that they plan to file a motion accusing the Justice Department of selectively and vindictively prosecuting Comey.
Federal prosecutors brought this case after a previous indictment on unrelated charges was tossed by a judge last fall. That indictment came just days after Trump publicly demanded his Justice Department to act "now" to bring prosecutions against Comey and other political foes.
Comey's daughter, Maurene Comey, is suing the Justice Department for unlawful termination after she was fired last year from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.
Comey was asked by ABC's Stephanopoulos what recourse he and his family can take in response to the Trump administration's targeting.
"We can avail ourselves of the last healthy part of the American government, which is the federal judiciary," Comey said. "So, my daughter is suing them to establish that you cannot fire a career person without cause, and obviously I'm defending myself, successfully in the last case and I have this ongoing one in North Carolina about seashells."
Comey, who appeared on "Good Morning America" to discuss his new novel "Red Verdict," was also asked about an ABC News report that Trump plans to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service in exchange for the creation of a $1.776 billion fund to compensate allies who claim they were wrongfully targeted by the Biden administration.
"What do you make of that?" Stephanopoulos asked Comey.
"Yeah, if I put it in my next novel, I'm sure my editor would strike it out and say it's crazy," Comey said. "It just can't be the way we operate. We can't set up a multi-million dollar ATM at Mar-a-Lago for people who've committed crimes. It just isn't the way we are. It's not consistent with our values. Eventually, the Department of Justice will right itself, but we're gonna have to ride out a hard two years."
Later Monday, after Comey’s appearance on “Good Morning America,” attorneys representing Trump informed a federal judge in a court filing that the president is dropping the $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS. Monday's court filing makes no mention of the compensation fund or any settlement talks.
The Justice Department then announced “as a a part of the settlement agreement” in the IRS case, the attorney general established “The Anti-Weaponization Fund” to "provide a systematic process to hear and redress claims of others who suffered weaponization and lawfare."
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