House Dem Rages At Comey Indictment: My ‘Parents Fled an Authoritarian Regime’ For This

 (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ) pulled no punches this week in reacting to the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, recalling how her parents fled authoritarian Iran and warned of democratic backsliding in the U.S.

Ansari shared a clip of Comey on Thursday night saying he still has faith in the justice system and is ready to go trial to defend himself. “My parents fled an authoritarian regime. My family’s seen this playbook before, which is why I haven’t been mincing my words about it,” she wrote while sharing Comey’s message.

“Trump fired a career prosecutor & installed his fixer to bring about bullshit charges against his political enemies. This is how democracies die,” Ansari warned.

Later, she followed that up with another post, saying, “He’s an aspiring dictator on a mission to silence dissent and target his political enemies.” Ansari’s post referenced President Donald Trump’s vow on Friday that “others” would be indicted following Comey.

Comey struck a defiant tone on Thursday night in response to the charges he leaked information in 2016, which actually is widely seen to have helped Trump win that election and was found not to have been leaked by him.

“My family and I have known for years that there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump, but we couldn’t imagine ourselves living any other way. We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn’t either,” began Comey. “Somebody that I love dearly recently said that fear is the tool of a tyrant and she’s right. But I’m not afraid and I hope you’re not either. I hope instead you are engaged. You are paying attention. And you will vote like your beloved country depends upon it, which it does.”

“My heart is broken for the Department of Justice, but I have great confidence in the federal judicial system and I’m innocent,” he concluded. “So let’s have a trial and keep the faith.”