'Disgusting': Ex-prosecutor rebukes Trump's latest move to prosecute a political opponent

A former federal prosecutor rebuked President Donald Trump for pressuring U.S. Attorney Erik Siebert, Trump's own appointee, to resign from the Eastern District of Virginia after Siebert declined to prosecute one of Trump's political adversaries.

Siebert resigned on Saturday amid "attacks from the president," Politico reported. The move came after Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi attempted to pressure Siebert to prosecute New York Attorney General Letitia James with mortgage fraud, the same crime that the administration has used to go after other opponents like Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.

Bondi appointed Mary “Maggie” Cleary, a conservative lawyer who says she was "framed" for being at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, to the post in eastern Virginia following Siebert's resignation, Politico reported.

Glenn Kirschner, the former Deputy U.S. Attorney in Washington, D.C., discussed Trump's efforts to prosecute James on Sunday during a new episode of "The Legal Breakdown" podcast with progressive YouTuber Brian Tyler Cohen.

"This story is not only disgusting, it is rule-of-law-busting," Kirschner said. "It's not terribly surprising because Donald Trump is forever bloating about prosecuting his political opponents."

"Kind of feels like these threats become hollow over time, but it seems like he has been insistent that he wants New York State Attorney General Tish James indicted for something," he added.

Kirschner added that Cleary is stepping into a "horrific situation."

"She knows that her predecessor reached the conclusion that there's no 'there' there," Kirschner said. "He actually honored his loyalty to the Constitution and declined to indict Tish James just because Donald Trump wanted him to. She will obviously have a decision to make. The question becomes, what kind of a person, what kind of a prosecutor, what kind of a US Attorney is she?"