Former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is in “a really perilous condition” because President Trump wants him prosecuted, CNN chief legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin said Thursday night.
Mr. McCabe was fired by ex-Attorney General Jeff Sessions after a Justice Department inspector general report concluded that he lied to investigators about a media leak.
Mr. McCabe now works as a CNN analyst along with Mr. Toobin.
In an interview with CNN anchor Don Lemon, Mr. Toobin cited the president’s frequent criticism of former FBI Director James Comey, who was fired in 2017, and Mr. McCabe.
“You can have grievances with James Comey,” Mr. Toobin said. “The idea [Comey] committed a crime is absurd. The person in a really perilous condition right now is CNN contributor Andrew McCabe, who is under investigation from the U.S. Attorney’s office right now. And, you know, has had his case dangling out there.”
“The president obviously wants Andy McCabe prosecuted,” Mr. Toobin continued. “And it is just grotesque that you have the president of the United States behaving this way with the power of prosecution exercised in this way.”
Mr. McCabe’s attorneys have long complained that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington will not say if he will be prosecuted. They say they’ve heard reports from the media that a grand jury rejected criminal charges, but the Justice Department won’t provide confirmation.
Separately, Mr. McCabe is suing the Justice Department and FBI, arguing that his termination was politically motivated and ordered by Mr. Trump.
He is seeking back pay and his pension, which he lost when he was terminated.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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