A Little Context
Footnotes to the Absurd
The new case
On October 23, 2026, the Justice Department announced charges against former FBI officials Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides. Prosecutors allege they made false statements to Congress in 2023 about their involvement in investigations concerning Hunter Biden.
DOJ presents the prosecution as accountability for alleged misconduct, explicitly invoking its opposition to government “weaponization.” The charges are allegations, not findings of guilt.
The disputed motive
Defense lawyers condemned the charges as politically motivated. The case revisits the FBI’s handling of the Hunter Biden laptop, a longstanding grievance of Trump and his allies. However, the complaint does not allege that the FBI suppressed the laptop story to protect Joe Biden’s campaign.
The names on the checklist
James Comey and Letitia James previously faced prosecutions Trump publicly demanded. Their original cases were dismissed because the prosecutor who obtained the indictments was unlawfully appointed. DOJ subsequently appealed those dismissals; Reuters reported on that appeal on September 15, 2026.
The cartoon’s checkmarks signify that prosecutions were pursued, not that either person was convicted.
The cartoon
Trump’s speech, the checklist and the cannon are invented satire, not a quotation, an actual government document or a literal event.
The cannon turns “weaponization” into something visible. The cartoon questions whether an administration can credibly promise impartial justice while pursuing cases against prominent adversaries. That criticism is an editorial interpretation, not a court’s determination of the administration’s motives.
The label says “For Impartial Use Only.” The checklist raises the question of who chooses the targets.