Mr. Trump has repeatedly railed in public and in private against law enforcement agencies for targeting his associates; among those who have been convicted are his former national security adviser, his campaign chairman and his deputy, and his personal lawyer.
“This is a horrible and very unfair situation,” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter of the original sentence recommendation for Mr. Stone, who was convicted of lying to Congress to protect him. “The real crimes were on the other side, as nothing happens to them. Cannot allow this miscarriage of justice!”
Mr. Trump has long suspected that people around him — both government officials and even some of his own political appointees — were secretly working against his interests. His impeachment for trying to coerce Ukraine to incriminate Democrats by withholding $391 million in security aid has only reinforced that view as he watched one official after another testify before the House.
Witnesses like Colonel Vindman testified under subpoena compelling them to talk, but Mr. Trump blamed them for his dilemma. In the Oval Office on Tuesday, Mr. Trump complained at length about Colonel Vindman, accusing him of misleading Congress about the president’s July 25 phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart. In fact, Colonel Vindman’s version of the call closely tracked the written record released by the White House, but he did testify that he thought it was inappropriate to ask a foreign country to tarnish the president’s domestic political opponents.
“We sent him on his way to a much different location, and the military can handle him any way they want,” Mr. Trump said. “General Milley has him now,” he added, referring to Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “I congratulate General Milley. He can have him. And his brother, also. We’ll find out. We will find out. But he reported very inaccurate things.”
Others involved in the impeachment process may also pay a price. The administration plans to withdraw the nomination for Pentagon comptroller of Elaine McCusker, a Defense Department official who questioned the aid freeze, The New York Post reported. While the Senate has not been notified of such a move, an administration official said it was likely to happen after budget hearings this week.
Ms. McCusker could not be reached for comment, and a Pentagon official referred questions to the White House, which had no comment. Senator James M. Inhofe, Republican of Oklahoma and the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters that he had “a feeling everything is going to be fine with the nomination.” But friends of Ms. McCusker said she was aware that her nomination was in jeopardy.