WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump pledged to “expose” his enemies during a norm-breaking political speech at the Justice Department in which he aired a litany of grievances against the criminal cases he faced and vowed retribution for what he described as the “lies and abuses that have occurred within these walls.”

The speech was meant to rally support for policies on violent crime, drugs and illegal immigration. But it also functioned as a triumphant forum for the president to boast about having emerged unscathed from two federal prosecutions that one year ago had threatened to torpedo his presidential prospects but were dismissed after his election win last fall.

Though other presidents have spoken from the DOJ’s ceremonial Great Hall, Trump’s address amounted to an extraordinary display of partisan politics and personal grievance inside a DOJ that is meant to be blind to both. He promised to target his perceived enemies even as he claimed to be ending what he called the weaponization of the department.

— The Associated Press