Donald Trump branded claims he told former FBI director James Comey to stop investigating Michael Flynn ‘fake news’.
The president hit out at the allegations on Twitter this morning, dismissing the claims as ‘another Comey lie’ as the bureau investigates whether Russia meddled in the US election.
It comes after claims Trump could be prosecuted for obstruction of justice due to a tweet from his account saying the president knew former national security adviser Michael Flynn lied to the FBI and that this was why he fired him.
Yesterday two sources told The Washington Post that the president’s personal lawyer, John Dowd, had authored the tweet, which appeared on the @realDonaldTrump account.
Donald Trump complained Saturday that Michael Flynn was receiving more attention from the FBI for lying to them over the Russia probe than Hillary Clinton did for destroying emails
Michael Flynn’s cooperation with the Russia probe seemed to unnerve Trump on Saturday night, when he lashed out at the FBI for ‘destroying’ the ex-adviser’s life.
‘So General Flynn lies to the FBI and his life is destroyed, while Crooked Hillary Clinton, on that now famous FBI holiday “interrogation” with no swearing in and no recording, lies many times… and nothing happens to her?’ Trump wrote.
‘Rigged system, or just a double standard?’
Trump complained that Flynn’s ‘life is destroyed’ by his FBI lies, while Clinton ‘lies many times’ during her interrogation by the FBI into her email server without any problems
Trump also complained that she deleted emails from her server three weeks after receiving a congressional subpoena. Trump banged the ‘lock her up’ drum to great effect during election
In a second tweet shortly after, Trump added: ‘Many people in our Country are asking what the “Justice” Department is going to do about the fact that totally Crooked Hillary, AFTER receiving a subpoena from the United States Congress, deleted and “acid washed” 33,000 Emails? No justice!’
The tweets come the day after Flynn agreed to cooperate with the FBI’s investigation into Russia’s meddling with the presidential election.
Flynn pleaded guilty to lying about communicating with Russian ambassador and alleged spy Sergey Kislyak in December last year, before Trump stepped into office.
Critics say that violates the 1799 Logan Act, which forbids unauthorized Americans from representing the US government to foreign powers that are in dispute with the US.
On Friday claims emerged that senuor members of the Trump transition team, had identified Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and close adviser, as the man who told him to liaise with Russia.
Trump’s tweets on Saturday see him returning – as often happens when he is under attack – to a rhetorical line that worked well during the elections.
Trump seemed unnerved after Flynn (seen Friday) agreed to cooperate with the Russia probe. On Friday it was rumored that Flynn would accuse Kushner of ordering him to speak to Russia
Clinton (seen on Saturday) performed her interview with ex-FBI head James Comey while not under oath. If she did lie in this interview, then she did not break the law – unlike Flynn
He and his followers have long demanded that the police imprison Clinton for running her private email server, even turning ‘Lock her up!’ into an election chant.
Clinton deleted 31,830 emails that she deemed ‘personal’ three weeks after receiving a congressional subpoena.
She also submitted to an interview with Comey regarding the email server during which Comey did not make her swear an oath.
In the interview she claimed not to have received classified emails, although in truth she had. Comey suggested that was because she was ‘not technically sophisticated’ enough to recognize them as such.
Also on Saturday, Trump wrote a tweet that led to accusations that he had obstructed the course of justice.
‘I had to fire General Flynn because he lied to the Vice President and the FBI. He has pled guilty to those lies,’ his account tweeted.
‘It is a shame because his actions during the transition were lawful. There was nothing to hide!’
Critics pointed out that if Trump knew Flynn had lied to the FBI when he fired him, then he also knew when he allegedly asked James Comey to ease off Flynn in his Russia probe. That would be obstruction of justice, they said.
However, later on Saturday two sources told The Washington Post that Trump’s personal lawyer, John Dowd, had authored the tweet.
Trump has always denied asking Comey to back of of Flynn; the claims come from a memo written by Comey immediately after the alleged encounter.