President Donald Trump refused to protect former adviser Corey Lewandowski from a Justice Department inquiry, stating that dishonest staffers are “stealing” from him. The remarks came before Trump left the White House for a midterm rally in Iowa.
What Donald Trump said when asked about Corey Lewandowski’s investigation
Trump told reporters he knew little about the probe into Corey Lewandowski, the former top adviser to ex-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem until their March ouster. The Wall Street Journal reported on October 22 that Lewandowski allegedly profited from his government role. He denies the claims.
“No, I don’t know about it. I mean, I heard something about it. But I don’t know exactly what it is. All I know is, I want my people to be honest, and if they’re not going to be honest, they have to be prosecuted,” Trump said. “I don’t know about specifically, but—because I view it [if] people are not honest, they’re stealing from me, as president. They’re stealing from me. So, I want my people to be honest, and if they’re not honest, I’ll have my DOJ go and do whatever they have to do.” When a reporter asked whether he supported the investigation, Trump replied: “Well, I guess I could stop anything. Look, if my people are not—I have no idea what he did. I have—just heard about it a little while. I want the people that work for this administration to be 100 percent honest.”
For those unaware, a DHS inspector general referral reportedly triggered the inquiry. Investigators examined whether Lewandowski used his administration standing to enrich himself, for example, by asking Qatari and U.A.E. officials to hire him privately for visa-related work. Some foreign officials were reportedly “taken aback” by the alleged offer. The outlet also noted that Lewandowski or close associates approved nearly all DHS spending above $100,000, giving him visibility into the department’s contractors.
Lewandowski ran Trump’s 2015 campaign until June 2016 and later served as a senior adviser to the 2024 campaign.
