Comey Fired Because He 'Could Bring Down A President'

In a letter, Trump told Comey: "You are hereby terminated and removed from office, effective immediately".

Mr Comey strongly defended his decisions during the hearing last week.

Trump attached letters from Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, recommending Comey's dismissal on the basis of his handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation.

Mr Sessions said the Department of Justice was "committed to a high level of discipline, integrity, and the rule of law", and "a fresh start is needed".

The White House said the search to replace Comey, the bureau's chief since 2013, will begin immediately.

Comey was speaking to agents at the FBI's field office in Los Angeles when the news broke. While McCain said Comey is "a man of honor and integrity, and he has led the Federal Bureau of Investigation well in extraordinary circumstances", one of his closest friends - Sen.

Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, who is now in India as part of a Congressional delegation, said, "The manner and suddenness of FBI Director Comey's firing is deeply disturbing".

"Almost everyone agrees the Director made serious mistakes; it is one of the few issues that unites people of diverse perspectives".

"If Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein does not appoint an independent special prosecutor, every American will rightly suspect that the decision to fire Director Comey was part of a coverup".

Neither of those statements are accurate, according to people close to the investigation.

Pointing to the ongoing House and Senate Intelligence committees' Russian Federation investigations, as well as the FBI's probe, Schumer asked, "Were these investigations getting too close to home for the president?" Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer asked a Tuesday evening press conference.

Timothy Flanigan, a former assistant attorney general in the George W. Bush administration, said, "It does seem to me, however, that, if investigations are underway, they will likely continue".

Trump tweeted last night in response: "Cryin" Chuck Schumer stated recently, "I do not have confidence in him (James Comey) any longer.' Then acts so indignant".

Democrats compared the ouster to Nixon's decision to fire the independent special prosecutor overseeing the Watergate investigation in 1973, which prompted the resignations of the Justice Department's top two officials.

This coup against constitutional legality bears all the hallmarks of a Trump operation, from incompetent presentation to gas-lighting defense to audacity that is stunning.

"I am troubled by the timing and reasoning of Director Comey's termination", Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr, a North Carolina Republican, said in a statement.

Republican Representative Justin Amash wrote on Twitter that he and his staff were reviewing the possibility of drafting legislation to create an independent commission to look into the Russian campaign meddling. In his letter to Comey, he revealed that the FBI director had informed him "on three separate occasions that I am not under investigation".

"I am very disappointed with this deputy attorney general, who I was told had a good reputation", he said. The White House even put out quotes from top Democrats - which were critical of Comey - to make the case that Democrats shouldn't mind his removal. But when the President fired Comey, suddenly some of those same critics turned instantly into Comey defenders. "I have found Director Comey to be a public servant of the highest order, and his dismissal further confuses an already hard investigation by the Committee".

Comey's firing was the latest and most significant White House-driven distraction from the Russian Federation investigations, which Trump has ridiculed and dismissed as a "hoax". That may have been an exaggeration at the time.

The 56-years-old official remained in spotlight as he was handling the landmark probe into the private e-mail server used by the then Democratic standard bearer Hillary Clinton.

"That was July of previous year", said Arena, the former Detroit FBI chief.

The surprise dismissal of Comey, who played a controversial role in last year's presidential election, came as he was leading a probe into whether Trump's aides colluded with Moscow to sway the November vote.

In four hours of testimony Comey gave an impassioned defense of his decision to reopen the Clinton probe.

The FBI clarified that the emails had been automatically backed up to Mr Weiner's computer rather than being deliberately transferred.