[Donald Trump had initially said that it was on the recommendation of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein that he had fired Comey for the mishandling of Clinton’s emails. However, in an interview with NBC news’ Lester Holt, he said he would have fired Comey regardless of the recommendation – rendering the first story meaningless. ... Trump also admitted to letting the Russia investigation influence his decision regarding firing Comey. “And in fact when I decided to just [fire Comey] I said to myself, I said, ‘You know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story, it’s an excuse by the Democrats for having lost an election that they should’ve won,’” he told Holt.]
http://indianexpress.com/article/what-is/what-is-the-controversy-about-donald-trump-firing-fbi-director-james-comey-4651960/ What is the controversy about Donald Trump firing FBI Director James Comey? Everything you need to know about James Comey and Donald Trump. By: Express Web Desk | New Delhi | Published:May 12, 2017 2:53 pm When President Trump came to power, he said in January that he would like Comey to serve his entire term. (File/AP) FBI director James Comey was fired on Tuesday by US President Donald Trump. What has followed and preceded it has been a great rubble of information that has created confusion about what exactly is Donald Trump’s position vis-a-vis Comey. In the backdrop of the investigation of the Russian intervention in the 2016 US Presidential election, speculators say the firing was essentially because of Comey’s renewed interest in it. In fact, Comey had recently sought increased federal resources for the investigation. In an NBC interview on Thursday, Trump elaborated on many other reasons why he fired Comey. Here’s a breakdown of everything that has happened. The Trump-Comey Relationship Then FBI Director James Comey had his fair share of involvement in the 2016 Presidential elections. In July, he announced he would be investigating the Clinton email leaks. However, after the said investigation, he only said that Hillary Clinton had been “extremely careless” in handling her emails but there was nothing incarcerating in them. Two weeks before the election, he announced an email investigation yet again, clearing her name a few days later. According to Clinton, it was this second announcement that really cost her the election. When President Trump came to power, he made it clear in January that he would like Comey to serve his entire term and Comey had agreed on the same. In a conference, he would later say, “You’re stuck with me for another six and a half years.” The Pandora’s Box In March, James Comey announced that FBI was investigating links between Trump campaign officials and the Russian government to the effect that it influenced the decision of the Presidential elections of 2016. On the other hand, Trump maintained that the Russian interference was only a hack introduced by the Democrats for political mileage. Even thought the Democrats had been talking of Russian interference in their campaign, it was in June 2016 that the threat materialised more significantly. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) was hacked, with hackers getting access to DNC emails, opposition research on Trump and personal chats. The CIA had concluded that the hacks had indeed come from Russian networks. “It is the assessment of the intelligence community that Russia’s goal here was to favor one candidate over the other, to help Trump get elected. That’s the consensus view,” a senior US official had said in an intelligence presentation made to US senators back in December 2016. donald trump, trump, trump comey, james comey, trump fires comey, james comey FBI, FBI director, FBI director fired, James comey fired, world news, US News Demonstrators gather outside the White House a day after President Donald Trump fired FBI Director James Comey in Washington. (AP Photo) Soon after Comey announced an investigation in FBI, Trump reportedly did a U-turn. In an interview with Fox, he was asked whether it was “too late” to fire Comey. Trump said it wasn’t and that he’s just waiting to see how things turn out. “You know, it’s going to be interesting,” he said. On May 9, Comey was giving an address to FBI officials when the news broke that he had been fired. He laughed it off as a “fairly funny prank”. His staff was not amused as the news became official. Trump Justifies Firing Comey Donald Trump had initially said that it was on the recommendation of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein that he had fired Comey for the mishandling of Clinton’s emails. However, in an interview with NBC news’ Lester Holt, he said he would have fired Comey regardless of the recommendation – rendering the first story meaningless. donald trump, trump, trump comey, james comey, trump fires comey, james comey FBI, FBI director, FBI director fired, James comey fired, world news, US News According to Trump, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein recommended the dismissal. (AP Photo/File) Trump has reiterated that Comey was fired because of incompetency. On Twitter, he also said that Comey lost the confidence of people, which called for his dismissal. “Comey lost the confidence of almost everyone in Washington, Republican and Democrat alike. When things calm down, they will be thanking me!” he said. He also announced that someone more capable than Comey would be soon inducted as the FBI director. View image on TwitterView image on Twitter Follow Bradd Jaffy ✔ @BraddJaffy Trump: “when I decided to just do it, I said to myself, I said you know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story” 4:31 AM - 12 May 2017 995 995 Retweets 1,301 1,301 likes Trump also admitted to letting the Russia investigation influence his decision regarding firing Comey. “And in fact when I decided to just [fire Comey] I said to myself, I said, ‘You know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story, it’s an excuse by the Democrats for having lost an election that they should’ve won,’” he told Holt. Further in the interview, he also blamed Comey for keeping FBI in “turmoil”. “He’s a showboat, he’s grandstander, the FBI has been in turmoil. You know that, I know that. Everybody knows that. You take a look at the FBI a year ago, it was in virtual turmoil, less than a year ago. It hasn’t recovered from that,” he said. donald trump, trump, trump comey, james comey, trump fires comey, james comey FBI, FBI director, FBI director fired, James comey fired, world news, US News FBI Director James Comey testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 3, 2017, before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing: “Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.” (AP Photo) The White House kept changing its stance, with Sean Spicer announcing Tuesday that the president acted only on the recommendation of Rosenstein. They then said that the President had wanted to fire him since Election Day and the Russia investigation solidified that decision. White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders added another narrative, saying it was dissatisfaction from within the team that caused the firing, that “the rank and file of the FBI had lost confidence in their director.” The Russian Connection According to various news reports, back in January 2017, after Trump was sworn-in as the President of United States, Comey was invited for dinner to the White House. Comey claimed that Trump asked him to pledge his loyalty to the president to which Comey responded by saying that he could pledge his honesty, but not his loyalty. The White House denies these claims. Parallels have been drawn with the Watergate Scandal 44 years ago when then President Richard Nixon fired Archibald Cox, the special prosecutor in the scandal who was fired by Nixon for subpoenaing the “Nixon Tapes” of the White House. US media houses are calling Trump’s move a “cover-up” for the Trump-Russia investigation, even though a line in Comey’s dismissal letter mentions a very specific line regarding the Russian investigation that apparently clears him of this accusation. “I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation,” the dismissal letter read. A day before Comey’s dismissal, Donald Trump had tweeted, “The Russia-Trump collusion story is a total hoax, when will this taxpayer funded charade end? Follow Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump The Russia-Trump collusion story is a total hoax, when will this taxpayer funded charade end? 4:16 AM - 9 May 2017 15,952 15,952 Retweets 62,144 62,144 likes Will the Russia investigation continue? Andrew McCabe, the FBI’s deputy director, said on Friday that the investigation the Trump-Russia probe but the White House will not be updated regarding the same. McCabe also slammed Sanders account of Comey’s unpopularity by saying that he still enjoys respect in the organisation. donald trump, trump, trump comey, james comey, trump fires comey, james comey FBI, FBI director, FBI director fired, James comey fired, world news, US News FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe who was elevated to acting FBI director after FBI director James Comey was fired by President Donald Trump on May 9, 2017. (AP Photo/File) “The vast majority of FBI employees enjoyed a deep and positive connection to Director Comey. I can tell you also that Director Comey enjoyed broad support within the FBI and still does,” McCabe said, effectively making null the explanation made by the White House deputy Press Secretary. -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. 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