 |
| James Comey swears before testimony at Senate on June 8th, 2017 |
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/comey-testifying-senators-trump-russia-n769701
FULL VIDEO. Comey testifies on Russia investigation at Senate Hearing. June 8, 2017.
by KEN DILANIAN and CORKY SIEMASZKO
WASHINGTON — Fired FBI Director James Comey testified
Thursday that he was "confused" and "concerned" when
President Donald Trump told the public he was firing him for undermining the
morale of the agency he had led since 2013.
"Those were lies, plain and simple," Comey said.
The Trump administration, he said, "chose to defame me
and, more importantly, the FBI by saying that the organization was in disarray,
that it was poorly led, that the workforce had lost confidence in its
leader."
Comey also said that while he didn’t want to express an
opinion on whether Trump was seeking to obstruct the ongoing investigation into
Russians meddling into the presidential election, he is “sure” the special counsel,
Robert Mueller, will be examining that. And he said he is sure he was fired
because of "the Russia investigation."
Comey also explained why he wrote memos chronicling his
private conversations with Trump: he had a "gut feeling" the
president might lie about the nature of the meetings.
"I knew there might come a day when I needed a record
of what happened," he said, citing the "nature" of the person he
was dealing with. He added that he never felt the need for such a record in
dealing with two former presidents, Barack Obama and George W. Bush.
Questioned about Trump's public statement that Comey had
"better hope that there are no tapes of our conversations," the
former director replied, "Lordy, I hope there are tapes."
Comey's forthright and unflinching remarks to the committee
— openly acknowledging his fear of the president's mendacity — made for two
hours and 40 minutes of dramatic sworn testimony before the Senate Intelligence
Committee.
Except for a few instances where the questioning veered off
into Comey's disputed handing of the Hillary Clinton email investigation, the
focus was on Trump. And there have been only a few similar moments in history
where a sitting president was exposed to such scathing congressional testimony
from a respected public servant.
While Comey stated emphatically he had no doubt at all that
the Russians tried to influence the election, Trump was watching the unfolding
drama in the White House dining room with his legal teams and close advisers.
Though associates had said he might use Twitter during the hearing, his account
remained silent.
Trump’s outside counsel, Marc Kasowitz, was expected to make
a statement after Comey finished his public testimony. But White House
spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders bristled at her boss' honesty being
questioned by Comey.
Comey 'Stunned' by
Trump Conversation: 'Lordy, I Hope There Are Tapes' 1:02
"I can definitely say the president is not a
liar," she told reporters. "Think it's frankly insulting the question
would be asked."
Comey gave Washington and the world a preview of the
testimony to come on Wednesday when he released an opening statement in which
he revealed that he told Trump on Jan. 6 he was not personally under
investigation.
But Comey, fired by Trump last month, also said the
president pressured him during a private meeting on March 30 to publicly reveal
he was not personally being probed by the FBI. Trump’s reason? He wanted to
“lift the cloud” on his presidency, according to Comey.
Trump and Comey met after the ousted FBI chief revealed
federal agents were investigating whether the Trump campaign colluded with the
Russian effort to meddle with the presidential election.
Under oath, Comey also confirmed an earlier news report that
Trump pressured him on Feb. 14 into dropping the FBI investigation of former
National Security Advisor Michael Flynn — a tactic Comey considered crossing the
line.
Play Comey: I Orchestrated Memo Leak in Hopes Special
Counsel Was Appointed Facebook Twitter Embed
Comey: I Orchestrated
Memo Leak in Hopes Special Counsel Was Appointed 0:54
Comey told the senators he was taken aback when Trump told
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, top Trump adviser Jared Kushner and others to
leave the room before he brought up Flynn.
"Why did he kick everyone out of the Oval Office?”
Comey asked. "That to me as an investigator is a very significant
fact."
Regarding Sessions, Comey hinted at something significant
that has not yet been made public. He said he knew ahead of time that Sessions
would have to recuse himself from the investigation, but would not discuss the
reasons. "We were aware of facts that I can't discuss in an open setting
that would make his continuing very problematic," Comey said.
Related: Who Is the 'Good Friend' Who Leaked Comey Memo?
He gave a similar tantalizing answer when asked outright
whether Trump colluded with Russia during the election campaign.
"That's a question I don't think I should answer in an
open setting," he said. "That is a question that will be answered by
the investigation."
Comey said that when Trump told him he "hoped" the
Flynn matter could be settled, a phrase out of old English history came to
mind.
"It rings in my ears of 'who will rid me of this
meddlesome priest?'," he said, referring to the words purportedly said by
King Henry II about Thomas Becket in the 12th century. Becket was later killed
by Henry's knights, and Becket became a saint.
Asked why he didn't tell Trump this was wrong, Comey
responded, "Maybe if I was stronger I would have."
"I was so stunned by the conversation I just took it
in," he said.
Under questioning, Comey admitted that he gave copies of his
Trump conversation memos to a good friend, a Columbia University Law professor,
with instructions to pass them on to the media, in the hopes that a special
counsel would be appointed. NBC News later confirmed that the professor was
Daniel Richman, who has known Comey for decades.
Play Burr Asks Comey: Was Trump Trying to Obstruct Justice?
Facebook Twitter Embed
Burr Asks Comey: Was
Trump Trying to Obstruct Justice? 1:25
In his written statement, Comey wrote that neither he nor
his subordinates at the FBI reported the conversation to the Justice
Department.
“After discussing the matter, we decided to keep it very
closely held, resolving to figure out what to do with it down the road as our
investigation progressed,” he wrote. "I think they were as shocked and
troubled by it as I was. The reaction was similar to mine. They were all
experienced people who had never experienced such a thing so they were very
concerned."
Comey also mentioned in the memo a private White House
dinner he had with Trump during which he said the president asked for his
loyalty.
“I need loyalty, I expect loyalty,” Trump said, according to
Comey.
Comey said he could offer honesty. And in testimony before
the senators, Comey swatted away a claim Trump made in an interview with NBC's
Lester Holt that Comey had dinner with him "because he wanted to stay
on" as FBI Director.
"No sir," Comey answered when asked if Trump's
assertion was true. "He said, 'I was going to invite your whole family,
but we'll do that next time.'"
The former FBI chief said his last contact with Trump was on
April 11. “The president called me and asked what I had done about his request
that I ‘get out’ that he is not personally under investigation,” he wrote.
"I replied that I had passed his request to the Acting
Deputy Attorney General, but I had not heard back. He replied that 'the cloud'
was getting in the way of his ability to do his job."
After Comey's opening statement was released, Kasowitz zeroed-in
on one part in particular.
“The President is pleased that Mr. Comey has finally
publicly confirmed his private reports that the President was not under
investigation in any Russian probe," Kasowitz said in a statement.
"The President feels completely and totally vindicated. He is eager to
continue to move forward with his agenda.”
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-California) said Thursday on MSBNC he
found Comey’s statement “quite shocking.”
“I think it's hard to reach any other conclusion but that
this is evidence of interference and obstruction,” he said.
Ken Dilanian reported from Washington, and Corky Siemaszko
from New York.
oOo
Hạnh Dương
www.Vietpressusa.us