Sen. Ron Johnson was asked on Meet the Press about President Donald Trump calling FBI officials “scum” in his rally over the weekend, and the Wisconsin Republican, remarkably, opted to defend the president.

NBC’s Andrea Mitchell asked Johnson on Sunday: “Is that the right way for the president of the United States to speak about law enforcement officers of the U.S. government?”

“Well first of all, I completely understand the president’s frustration,” Johnson replied. “He knew from day one that he was innocent. And he was subjected to this two year investigation — a very thorough investigation.”

“From my standpoint, there has been a concerted effort since the day after the election to sabotage this administration,” Johnson added, pointing to the investigations Senate Republicans are looking to pursue into top FBI officials behind the Russia probe.

Johnson’s defense of Trump was met with a backlash, notably from former FBI agent turned CNN analyst Josh Campbell, who worked under James Comey:

2019: The President of the United States calls FBI officials “scum.” A member of the august United States Senate then defends the comments. pic.twitter.com/27awTmbNNR

— Josh Campbell (@joshscampbell) April 28, 2019

Sam Vinograd, a colleague of Campbell’s and national security analyst at CNN, saw projection in the president’s comments:

I think in layman’s terms, we call that “projecting”

— Sam Vinograd (@sam_vinograd) April 28, 2019

from Mediaite http://bit.ly/2UMIFLx