Hillary Clinton explains to Stephen Colbert why Trump can be indicted

Hillary Clinton has a message for Donald Trump: You’re not above the law.

On Friday, the former First Lady and Secretary of State discussed the legal challenge of indicting a sitting president, which Trump’s legal team has claimed cannot happen, on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. Clinton was present to promote the paperback release of her best-selling campaign memoir, What Happened.

“If you’re not president and you’ve committed a crime, you should be able to be indicted,” Clinton explains to Colbert. Trump and his campaign are under federal investigation for obstruction of justice and potential collusion with the Russian government, both of which, Clinton implies, apply to the time-period before Trump’s tenure.

However, she adds, the law is murkier when it comes to indicting the president’s in-office conduct — say, the firing of former FBI Director James Comey. “The constitution has a specific remedy — which is impeachment,” Clinton says. She then adds that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a president can be subpoened.

In a blistering new afterword to What Happened, Clinton reflects on the Trump presidency thus far and warns, “Our democracy is in crisis.”

“Trump and his cronies do so many despicable things that it can be hard to keep track,” she writes. “There are no tanks in the streets. The administration’s malevolence may be constrained on some fronts — for now — by its incompetence. But our democratic institutions and traditions are under siege.”

Watch the clip above. What Happened is now available in paperback.