Trump labors to make Mueller-Comey tie a key talking point

The White House said in a letter on Friday that a tweet by President Donald Trump on Thursday was the formal answer to a request by the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee for information about records of conversations with fired Federal Bureau of Investigation director James Comey.

Former prosecutors said the tweets could be of interest to Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is said to be examining whether Trump attempted to obstruct Comey and the FBI's investigation in his wide-ranging probe.

When the Fox interviewer suggested that the possible existence of recordings might make sure Comey "stayed honest in those hearings", Trump paused before responding, "Well, it wasn't very stupid, I can tell you that". My story was always the truth.

"Lordy I hope there are tapes", Comey said when he testified before a Senate committee, because he believed that accurate recordings of his conversations with Trump would support his contention that the President had pressured him on the Russian Federation matters.

Huckabee Sanders and the press office intensified the Wonderland atmospherics at the White House when they refused to let her appearance be shown on video and then described an announcement of this refusal as "NONREPORTABLE".

Asked if Mr Mueller should recuse himself from the Russian Federation probe, Mr Trump said: "Well, he's very, very good friends with Comey, which is very bothersome". "We're going to have to see", he replied.

Trump, according to his advisers, had become enormously frustrated that Comey would not say so publicly.

Not to mention, Comey was directing the examination until the point that Trump terminated him out of disappointment with the inquiry. "I mean the whole thing is ridiculous, if you want to know the truth".

He said, Trump's tweet has no impact on the advisory group's examination of Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential election. Trump and Comey spoke several times, both in person and on the phone.

Asked by a reporter at a May 18 press conference whether he urged Comey "in any way, shape, or form to close or back down the investigation into Michael Flynn", the president offered a curt response.

"The president tweeted on Friday after I got fired that I better hope there's not tapes", said Comey.

Representatives for Conaway and Schiff did not respond on Friday afternoon to queries about whether the White House had met the deadline to provide the materials.

The two-paragraph letter to the committee, signed not by White House Counsel Don McGahn but by Marc Short, assistant to the president for legislative affairs, simply referred the committee to a statement Trump made on Twitter earlier in the week.