Former FBI Director James Comey savaged President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers who dragged him into another closed-door interview on Monday, slamming the president for lying about the bureau’s investigations and urging the GOP to ‘stand up and speak the truth.’
Comey exited his five and half hour session with lawmakers and immediately went on the attack, claiming the time was a repeat of his last appearance, where he was asked about Hillary Clinton’s email server and the Christopher Steele dossier.
‘Another day of the Hillary Clinton emails and the Steele dossier – this while the president is lying about the FBI, attacking the FBI and attacking the rule of law in this country. How does this make any sense at all?,’ he told reporters.
Former FBI Director James Comey savaged President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers who dragged him into another closed-door interview on Monday
He repeatedly urged GOP lawmakers to ‘stand up and tell the truth’
He then went on to criticize the Republicans that brought him to Capitol Hill.
‘Republicans used to understand that the actions of a president mattered, the words of matter, the rule of law matters and the truth matters. Where there are those Republicans today?,’ he asked.
‘At some point, someone has to stand up and in the face of fear of Fox News, fear of their base, fear of mean tweets, stand up for the values of this country and not slink away into retirement, but stand up and speak the truth,’ he added.
Several of the Republican lawmakers on the House Judiciary Committee and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee – the panels that questioned him – are retiring at the end of the year.
Comey did not hold back his fury and frustration in the nearly 10 minutes he spoke with reporters after the session ended.
He also took the opportunity to criticize the president for calling his former personal attorney Michael Cohen a ‘rat.’
Trump went on a twitter attack in the days after Cohen was sentenced to three years in federal prison. He also attacked the FBI and claimed they illegally searched Cohen’s office and home.
The agents had a series of search warrants when they conducted the raid that resulted in evidence used against Cohen.
Comey did not hold back his fury and frustration
President Trump (left) called his former lawyer Michael Cohen (right) a ‘rat’; the two have traded blows since Cohen pleaded guilty to crimes that implicate the President
‘It undermines the rule of law,’ Comey said of Trump’s attacks. ‘This is the president of the United States calling a witness, who has cooperated with his own justice department a rat. Say that again to yourself at home and remind yourself where we have ended up.’
‘We have to stop being numb to it, whether you’re Republican or Democrat, stand on your feet, overcome your shame and say something,’ he added.
But it was Republican lawmakers that felt the weight of his wrath as the former FBI director repeatedly went after them for not standing up the president.
‘People who know better, including Republican members of this body, have to have the courage to stand up and speak the truth, not be cowed by mean tweets or fear of their base. There is a truth and they’re not telling it. Their silence is shameful,’ he said.
Comey came to Capitol Hill on Monday for round two of a session with lawmakers after a six-hour appearance before them earlier this month.
During that time he was questioned about the bureau’s actions in the 2016 presidential election, including the investigation of Hillary Clinton’s private email server; the infamous Christopher Steele dossier which alleged Trump was vulnerable to blackmail by the Russians; and the probe of Russia’s actions in the campaign.
The former FBI director didn’t hide his frustration at the repeat performance.
‘The questions about the Hillary Clinton and Steele dossier strike me as more of the same. I didn’t learn anything new in there. Maybe they did,’ he told reporters after he left Monday’s session.
He also brushed aside a question on whether he has harmed the reputation of the FBI, which has taken a public beating in the past year.
‘They got truthful testimony from me. When you’re a director of an organization for 38,000 sometimes you don’t know what form they filled out. That’s silliness. We had to make very hard decisions in 2016. I knew we would get hurt by it. The question is, how do we reduce the damage? I would rather not be talking to you all but somebody has to stand up and speak for the FBI, the rule of law. I hope there’s a whole lot more somebodies out there than just me,’ he said.
Before the hearing began, one Republican lawmaker warned Comey would face questions about the bureau’s questioning of former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.
Comey brushed aside a question on whether he has harmed the reputation of the FBI
Comey was asked about the FBI investigation of former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn (above)
Since their last session, the special counsel’s office had released new information about the interview FBI agents conducted with Flynn at the White House, where they asked him about his dealings with Russian officials.
Comey was asked why he hadn’t informed Sally Yates – the Obama appointee who was acting head of the Justice Department – and Comey’s boss – before the Senate confirmed Attorney General Jeff Sessions – about agents’ plans to interview Flynn until the day it happened.
‘Because I knew that if anything came of the interview, if it advanced our investigation, the attack from the Trump administration would be that an Obama holdover had engineered it. I had to make the decision separate from her,’ Comey said.
‘The only opportunity would be to burn down the entire FBI. To my shock and horror, they’ve tried to do just that in the face of silence from people in this building,’ he noted.
Comey also slammed Republicans for suggesting Flynn was tricked by agents in his interview.
‘They’re up here, attacking the FBI’s investigation of a guy who pled guilty to lying to the FBI. He should have been warned, you shouldn’t lie. He should have been told, you could have a lawyer. That’s nonsense. I’m very proud of the way the FBI conducted itself, agile, flexible, thoughtful, pursued the leads where you want us to,’ he said.
The final question to Comey was whether he had confidence in acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker, who would be his boss if he still headed the bureau.
‘No comment,’ Comey said and left with his legal team.
Former FBI Director James Comey arrived on Capitol Hill Monday for round two of questions with lawmakers
California Republican Rep. Darrel Issa said he will be asking Comey about Flynn in the session
Besides Comey, lawmakers are expected to question former Attorney General Loretta Lynch on Wednesday.
Comey superseded Lynch when he declared the Clinton email probe closed and then informed congressional leaders days before the 2016 election that it had been reopened.
President Trump has preserved with his attacks on the former FBI director as the Russia investigation remains in the spotlight and the president’s former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, was sentenced to three years in prison.
He slammed Comey after his last round with lawmakers and went after him again shortly after his Oval Office blowup with House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer.
Comey had testified before Congress that the president asked him for ‘loyalty’ and to let go an investigation into Flynn over his Russia contacts.
Outgoing Republican Rep. Darrell Issa said on Sunday he believed the FBI had ‘tricked’ Trump’s former National Security Adviser into not having a lawyer during a January 2017 interview.
Since Comey’s last sit down, the special counsel’s office released memos from the FBI about Flynn’s interview when he lied about the content of calls with then-Russian ambassador to the United States Sergey Kislyak.
Flynn later admitted he lied to federal authorities but alleged in a court filling last week that the FBI pushed him toward having no lawyer present for his January 2017 interview with agents.
Comey dismissed that argument on Monday in an echo of Mueller’s team’s defense of the agents’ interview.
‘The interview was voluntary, and lacked any indicia of coercion,’ the memo from prosecutors said of Flynn.
‘A sitting National Security Advisor, former head of an intelligence agency, retired lieutenant general, and 33-year veteran of the armed forces knows he should not lie to federal agents,’ it noted. ‘He does not need to be warned it is a crime to lie to federal agents to know the importance of telling them the truth.’
President Trump continues to target the former FBI director
Trump tweeted late on Monday night: ‘James Comey’s behind closed doors testimony reveals that ‘there was not evidence of Campaign Collusion’ with Russia when he left the FBI. In other words, the Witch Hunt is illegal and should never have been started!’
Since Comey’s last sit down, a the special counsel’s office released memos from the FBI about Flynn’s interview when he lied to agents about his Russia dealings
Asked about the contents of these conversations during the interview at his office in the White House in the days following Trump’s inauguration, Flynn told agents he did not discuss sanctions with Kislyak.
However an audio recording of the December 29, 2016 phone call, which was tapped by U.S. intelligence officials, proved he had.
Flynn is scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday, the first former White House official to face the judge.
Some Republicans – including Trump – claim the FBI initially didn’t believe Flynn lied to them about his dealings with Russians.
Comey was asked about Flynn in his last appearance before lawmakers and pushed back on that notion.
‘My recollection was he was – the conclusion of the investigators was he was obviously lying, but they saw none of the normal common indicia of deception: that is, hesitancy to answer, shifting in seat, sweating, all the things that you might associate with someone who is conscious and manifesting that they are being — they’re telling falsehoods,’ he said. ‘There’s no doubt he was lying, but that those indicators weren’t there.’
Last week special counsel Robert Mueller’s office said that Flynn’s cooperation – including 19 meetings with investigators – was so extensive that he was entitled to avoid prison when he is sentenced.
Lawmakers released a 235-page transcript of Comey’s last session, which led to a tweet from President Donald Trump.
‘James Comey’s behind closed doors testimony reveals that ‘there was not evidence of Campaign Collusion’ with Russia when he left the FBI. In other words, the Witch Hunt is illegal and should never have been started!,’ he wrote on Monday.
Former FBI boss James Comey talks to reporters after his last closed-door meeting with lawmakers
Comey tweeted his last interview with lawmakers ‘wasn’t a search for the truth’
Lawmakers, however, expressed frustration at the many questions the former FBI director was not able to answer.
Comey offered his own assessment of the hearing, tweeting that the interview ‘wasn’t a search for truth, but a desperate attempt to find anything that can be used to attack the institutions of justice investigating this president. They came up empty today but will try again. In the long run, it’ll make no difference because facts are stubborn things.’
Monday is likely to be Comey’s last sit down before the GOP-led House, as incoming Judiciary Chairman – Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler – he has no interest in continuing the matter once Democrats take power in January.
Additionally Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy, the current chair of the Oversight committee, and GOP Rep. Bob Goodlatte, the current chair of the Judiciary committee, are joining Issa in retiring from Congress.
That means some of Comey’s fiercest critics will lose their perch at the end of the year.