05 September 2018•Update: 06 September 2018
By Michael Hernandez
WASHINGTON
House Speaker Paul Ryan broke with U.S. President Donald Trump Wednesday over his criticism of the Justice Department's indictments of two Republican members of Congress.
"The process is working its way as it should," Ryan told reporters at his weekly news conference.
"Justice should be blind," he said. "It's very important that we respect the fact that justice should be blind. It should have no impact on political party."
The comments are in stark opposition to Trump's continued feud with Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his Justice Department.
The president tweeted Monday that the indictments of congressmen Duncan Hunter of California and Chris Collins of New York are imperiling Republican chances heading into November's midterm elections.
"Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff......" he said, referring to Sessions. "The Democrats, none of whom voted for Jeff Sessions, must love him now."
The indictments are unrelated, and Trump falsely claimed both cases were started during the presidency of his predecessor. Only Collins' case began when former President Barack Obama was in office.
The New York Republican is facing securities fraud charges while Hunter is facing charges of misusing campaign funds.
They have pleaded not guilty, but have been removed from their congressional committees.
Trump opened his most recent salvo against Sessions in late August, saying his attorney general "never took control of the Justice Department."
The public criticism prompted Sessions to retort via a rare statement in which he emphasized he "took control of the Department of Justice the day I was sworn in, which is why we have had unprecedented success at effectuating the President’s agenda."
"While I am Attorney General, the actions of the Department of Justice will not be improperly influenced by political considerations," Sessions said.
Trump repeatedly has had Sessions in his crosshairs following the attorney general's 2017 decision to recuse himself from the federal investigation into Russia interference in the 2016 presidential election. Trump blames the decision for paving the way for the appointment of Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
