On Monday, President Donald Trump took to Twitter to criticize the Justice Department's indictments of two Republican Congressmen on the grounds that the legal actions would hurt their election chances.
"Two long running, Obama era, investigations of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department," the tweet read. "Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time."
The tweet is presumed to refer to two early supporters of Trump, California Representative Duncan Hunter and New York Representative Chris Collins, who were both indicted last month — Hunter for improper use of campaign funds, and Collins for insider trading. Both have pleaded not guilty.
Homeland security expert Juliette Kayyem told Boston Public Radio that she believes the president is politicizing the Justice Department.
"He views the Department of Justice as a tool for his political advantage and ought not to be used for his political disadvantage," Kayyem said.
Kayyem went on to call the tweet "shocking" but added that she believes the president's attacks have been enabled by a Congress that is reluctant to check his impulses.
"We don't need any more data points to know that this Congress and Senate will not be a check on the president," Kayyem said.
"Why is Trump pushing the envelope every single day? Because he's never been checked," she continued.
