I’m Not a King, but I Play One on TV

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I’m Not a King, but I Play One on TV

April 30, 2026,

5:04 a.m. ET

The real thing.

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By

Frank Bruni

and

Bret Stephens

Mr. Bruni is a contributing Opinion writer; Mr. Stephens is an Opinion columnist.

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Frank Bruni

: Bret, I can’t quite believe I’m asking you this question, but incredulity is a leitmotif of life under President Trump. Do you think James Comey, the former F.B.I. director, is guilty of incendiary seashell photography — incitement by exoskeleton — and deserved to be

indicted

(yet again!) this week?

Bret Stephens

: It gives a whole new meaning to the word shellshocked.

You’re referring to the fact that Comey

posted a photo

last year on social media of seashells that spelled out the numbers “86” and “47” — the latter being an apparent reference to Trump as the 47th president, the former a term of art that can mean “ban” or “remove” but sometimes means “kill.” This was bad taste and worse judgment from Comey — someone whose nomination to lead the F.B.I.

I opposed back in 2013 when I was at The Wall Street Journal

, long before Trump came on the political scene. But the idea that Comey should be indicted over this is preposterous, dangerous and nakedly unconstitutional. And that Trump is going after him a second time is vindictive, reckless and characteristically self-defeating.

Frank

: “Self-defeating” is the Trump epithet du jour. I thought I’d exhausted my capacity to be surprised by Trump, but his current behavior actually does stun me. In polling and in elections over the past seven months, Americans have been telling him that they’re not happy with a presidency consumed by grievance and self-adoration. They want gas prices lowered, not perceived enemies prosecuted. But he’s a tape loop made flesh: Glorify me! Avenge me! Really, does he have a political death wish?

Bret

: What’s the Russian fable about the scorpion who convinces the frog to carry him across the river? The scorpion winds up stinging the frog — and drowning them both — because it’s in his nature. Well, that’s Trump: Petty grievances leading to self-inflicted harm is in his nature.

Frank

: His nature is nurturing disaster for Republicans in November — if he and they play fair. But that’s a big “if.” To wit: On Tuesday, the Federal Communications Commission — under the direction of Brendan Carr, a peerless Trump sycophant who has been known to wear a lapel pin bearing the president’s visage —

announced a review

of all station licenses owned by ABC. It’s an act of utter malice and gross intimidation of a network with the effrontery to put Jimmy Kimmel on the air and with coverage Trump generally dislikes. It’s also of a piece with the barrage of litigation by which Trump tries to get journalists to back off, lest they face crippling legal bills. Bret, this is really, really chilling stuff.

Bret

: Very true. Very bad. But by now we should be somewhat comforted by the fact that the administration’s threats rarely amount to much. Kimmel is still on air. Greenland is still part of Denmark. The Times and The Wall Street Journal still report fearlessly. Trump’s lawsuits and indictments still get thrown out of court. People continue to protest and organize against the administration. It’s not that the president’s instincts aren’t authoritarian. They are. It’s that our judicial institutions remain resilient and our democratic instincts remain strong. Come next year, when Democrats run one or both houses of Congress again, will you still be as anxious about the fate of the Republic?

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