The Russia issue has cast a shadow over the early months of Mr Trump's presidency. He vouched for the importance of the FBI's independence, and excused Trump's blurring of that line as missteps by a man who isn't "steeped in the long-running protocols" that govern the relationship between the White House and the law enforcement agency. Angus King, I-Maine, who brought up the fact that Trump had told NBC's Lester Holt that Comey had initiated the dinner in question because he wanted to keep his job.
The firing came, Comey said, after he was pushed to drop the probe into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn. That's an accusation that the House Intelligence Committee, Senate Intelligence Committee, Comey, and other officials all say was made without any factual basis. "I think this whole story is a massive lie, I think it's mass hysteria at its worst, and I think it's scary how people can get so irrational".
Sen. Richard BlumenthalRichard BlumenthalBlumenthal: There's "mounting case" for obstruction of justice Dems plan to sue Trump over conflicts of interest: report Dem senator: Trump's Federal Bureau of Investigation pick "has solid credentials" MORE (D-Conn.) said on Thursday that an obstruction of justice case appears to be mounting around President Trump.
Comey took notes on their conversations because he anxious the president "might lie" later.
Kasowitz criticized Comey's testimony Thursday saying he "admitted that he unilaterally and surreptitiously made unauthorized disclosures to the press of privileged communications with the president". "I was so stunned by the conversation I just took it in".
At one point he practically dared Trump to release any recordings of their conversations, a prospect the president once alluded to in a tweet. Why wouldn't Comey say so sooner?
The February meeting was one of several one-on-one encounters that Comey said made him feel such intense discomfort that he felt compelled to document them in memos.
With his father's Twitter handle silent, @DonaldJTrumpJr became the 10th most mentioned Twitter handle in the Comey conversation, according to social media analysis firm Brandwatch.
Separately, the Senate Judiciary Committee has asked Columbia Law School professor Daniel Richman to turn over his copies of Comey's memos about his meetings with President Trump.
Penguins melt Predators, pull ahead in Finals series
He's a scorer, a pure sniper who can run hot and cold, but who has the ability to change the game with just one shot. He also isn't anxious about the Penguins getting overconfident with a chance to win the Stanley Cup on Sunday night.
The probe into Flynn was part of a wider FBI investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and possible collusion with Mr Trump campaign aides.
Comey said he shared an unclassified memo of their conversation about Flynn because he hoped it would lead to the appointment of a special counsel.
The House requested Comey and the White House provide the records, including tapes if they exist, by June 23. The opposite was the case as the firing created an enormous political firestorm that has stalled Trump's legislative agenda on Capitol Hill and taken over Washington.
Though Republicans worked to discredit Comey and to blunt the impact of his testimony, the ex-director's statement deepened questions about the basis for his May 9 dismissal and about whether Trump's actions constituted obstruction of justice.
To wit, Mr. Comey is trying to have it both ways.
During a discussion of the Hillary Clinton email investigation, Comey disclosed that then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch, an Obama administration appointee, instructed him to refer to the issue as a "matter", not an "investigation".
Trump's personal lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, said Comey's testimony proved the president was not under any investigation and there is no evidence a single vote was changed as a result of Russian interference in last year's election.
The Justice Department later issued a statement saying that Sessions recused himself from the Russian Federation probe only because he had been part of Trump's campaign. "That is a very big deal, and not just because it involves me".
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