Trump thinks he is the target of a 'witch hunt.' Nixon thought so too

William Cummings | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Special Counsel: Trump lashes out at 'single greatest witch hunt' President Trump is calling the Justice Department’s federal investigation into his campaign’s potential ties to Russia a 'witch hunt.' Veuer's Josh King (@abridgetoland) has more.

President Trump is not the first president to believe he was the victim of a political witch hunt.

Former president Richard Nixon also used that phrase when speaking about the Senate Watergate hearings looking into the scandal that eventually led to his resignation, Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein reported in 1973.

"'The President,' one source said, 'sees the hearings as an attempt to get Richard Nixon and do it just damn unfairly,'" Woodward and Bernstein wrote.

Trump too has complained of unfair treatment. On Thursday, in the wake of the appointment of former FBI director Robert Mueller as special counsel to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election, he tweeted, "This is the single greatest witch hunt of a politician in American history!"

Of course, Trump and Nixon are far from the only politicians to believe they were the victims of unjust allegations. Hillary Clinton famously referred to the Whitewater investigation and the revelations about former president Bill Clinton's affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky as part of a "vast right-wing conspiracy."

But few have used the phrase as often as President Trump. Here's a look back at the times Trump referred to something as a "witch hunt" in his tweets:

When James Clapper himself, and virtually everyone else with knowledge of the witch hunt, says there is no collusion, when does it end? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 12, 2017

Mike Flynn should ask for immunity in that this is a witch hunt (excuse for big election loss), by media & Dems, of historic proportion! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 31, 2017

...is all of the illegal leaks of classified and other information. It is a total "witch hunt!" — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 3, 2017

FAKE NEWS - A TOTAL POLITICAL WITCH HUNT! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2017

The media is really on a witch-hunt against me. False reporting, and plenty of it - but we will prevail! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 15, 2016