From this morning to early afternoon, former FBI Director James Comey had the eyes of the country as he testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee.
This was the first time Comey, who was appointed for a ten year term by President Obama in 2013, had spoken publicly about his relationship with President Trump since his firing.
At the beginning of the hearing, the Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee stated that its goal was to know if Russian intelligence interfered in the 2016 U.S. election. The Committee also wanted to confirm if President Trump asked Comey for “loyalty,” referring to the ongoing FBI Russia probe.
“Today is your opportunity to set the record straight,” the Chair told Comey. “The American people need to hear your side of the story.”
During the hearing’s opening address, Senator Mark Warner stood before the Committee, saying, “We are here because a foreign adversary attacked us here at home.”
“We must find out what the Russians did – and why they were so successful,” continued Warner. We “must prevent this from happening again…we cannot let anything or anyone prevent us from getting to the bottom of this.”
Warner went on to describe Russia’s interference in last year’s presidential election. He stated that the interference was not simply his opinion but “the unanimous conclusion of the entire U.S. intelligence community.”
Following Warner’s address, all attention turned to Comey. He had been listening to Warner with a straight face, not giving away what he was thinking. At six foot eight inches tall, Comey stood to be sworn in.
During his opening statement, Comey said that he initially did not question his termination, for he understood that he served at the pleasure of the president. However, he was confused when Trump made a televised statement asserting that he fired Comey because of the Russia probe. The president also claimed that the FBI was in disarray.
Comey claimed that Trump’s statements defamed him and the FBI. “Those were lies plan and simple. The FBI is honest, the FBI is strong, [and] the FBI will always be independent.”
As for the Russia probe, Comey affirmed Senator Warner’s opening address, saying that Russia for certain interfered in the election. Nonetheless, he was confident that Russia did not alter the election votes.
When asked about his memos, Comey claimed that he recorded his interactions with the president because “he was honestly concerned [Trump] might lie about the nature of our meeting[s].”
“That kind of thing I had never experienced before,” continued Comey. With Trump, he felt that he would have to defend the integrity of the FBI and himself in the future, while he did not feel the need to record his meetings with President Bush or President Obama.
Comey specifically talked about the White House meeting during which Trump asked everyone, including Attorney General Jeff Sessions, to leave the room.
“My impression is something big was about to happen and I need to remember every single word that is spoken,” Comey told the committee. Accordingly, Comey wrote a personal memo, recording the private meeting in a way for it to be marked unclassified.
“My thinking was if I write it in such a way that it doesn’t trigger such a classification” it could later be shared with an investigative team.
The Committee then quizzed Comey on Trump telling him “I hope you can let this go,” referring to the FBI’s investigation into Michael Flynn. Committee members asked Comey if anyone had been charged with obstruction of justice by simply using the word “hope.” Comey stated that he did not know of anyone in that situation, but he “took it as a direction.”
“This is the President of the United States with me alone,” continued Comey. “That’s the way I took it.”
Comey had shared the details of this private meeting with several senior FBI officials. They were extremely concerned as well; however, they did not want the Russia investigation team to find out.
Accordingly, Comey and his colleagues sought to find a way to validate Trump’s comments, given it was Trump’s word against Comey’s.
Comey went on to say that Trump originally encouraged the Russia probe. A thorough investigation would enable the president to put the issue behind him, as well as see if any of his “satellites” truly had contact with the Russians.
However, when Comey briefed Trump on the contents of the leaked ‘Russian hooker’ dossier and told him that the investigation may be risky, Trump had a “strong and defensive” reaction and was “tempted to order [Comey] to investigate it.”
“You need to be careful about that,” responded Comey, “as it may create a narrative we are investigating you personally.”
After President Trump tweeted on May 12 about there being tapes of his conversations with Comey, Comey asked a friend, a Columbia Law school professor, to share the contents of his memo with the press, hoping it would lead to the appointment of a special counsel.
He then asserted that this was private information and not a classified government document that was leaked, meaning it was not illegal.
When asked why he did immediately report his “serious and troublesome” interactions with Trump, Comey stated that “no action was the most important thing [he] could do” to protect the Russia probe.
Comey proclaimed that he would like for tapes of conversations with Trump to be released. “The President surely knows whether he taped me, and if he did my feelings aren’t hurt.”
The hearing then opened up for questions, which had been submitted to the Committee beforehand.
When asked if he believed Trump colluded with Russia, Comey stated the he did not think he should answer that “in an open setting.” However, Comey’s testimony confirmed that the president was not under investigation personally.
The hearing wrapped up following the question and answer session. Comey certainly provided enough material for the press to pour over, as well as for the Trump administration to respond to.
Featured image via Wikimedia Commons