The former director of the FBI told U.S. Sen. Susan Collins that he helped reveal details of private conversations with President Donald Trump in hopes of getting a special counsel to oversee the investigation into Russian interference in the election.
The revelation came during former FBI Director James Comey's highly anticipated testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday. Collins is a member of the committee.
Collins asked Comey if he shared memos detailing his conversations with the president with anyone other than the Justice Department. Comey confirmed that he gave one memo to a friend, who then read it to a New York Times reporter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNAicGcBUb8
The memo became part of an explosive report in which Comey said the president asked him to abandon the FBI probe into his former national security adviser, Michael Flynn.
"My judgment was I needed to get that out into the public square," Comey said. "So I asked a friend of mine to share the content of the memo with a reporter - didn't do it myself for a variety of reasons - but I asked him to because I thought that might prompt the appointment of a special counsel."
Former FBI Director Robert Mueller was appointed as special counsel shortly after the report.
But Comey's stunning revelation during sworn testimony prompted additional questions by Republican members of the committee, who repeatedly asked why he shared the information with the press. Comey said he felt compelled to after Trump insinuated in tweets that he had tapes of his conversations with the fired FBI director.
Earlier in his testimony, Comey said he hoped that recordings of his conversations with the president existed because they would corroborate his account of the Feb. 14 meeting with Trump in the Oval Office. Comey said the meeting made him uncomfortable and prompted him to start taking notes about his conversations with the president.
He said he took detailed notes because he was concerned that the president might lie about what was discussed during those meetings.
Comey also accused the Trump administration of smearing him and the FBI after the president fired him May 9.
"The administration then chose to defame me and more importantly the FBI by saying that the organization was in disarray, that it was poorly led,’’ Comey said. “Those were lies, plain and simple. And I’m so sorry that the FBI workforce had to hear them, and I’m so sorry the American people were told them.’’
Comey also testified that he believed Trump was seeking a quid pro quo — that Trump would retain him as FBI director if Comey buried the Flynn inquiry.
Comey's testimony was carried live on national television networks and included several revelations about Russian attempts to influence the election and potential collusion with Trump associates.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXmY29A34fo&feature=youtu.be
Independent U.S. Sen. Angus King, who also sits on the intelligence committee, focused his questions on the election interference. He asked Comey if last year's interference was a "one-off." Comey said it wasn't.
"Yes sir, it's really not a Republican thing or Democratic thing, it really is an American thing. They're going to come for whatever party they choose to work on behalf of and they're not devoted to either in my experience. They're just about their own advantage and they will be back," Comey said.
King also asked Comey whether he took the president's request to drop the Flynn investigation as a directive. In his response, Comey quoted King Henry II, who openly floated the idea of killing Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury, in 1170.
“Did you take that as a directive?” King asked Comey of Trump’s question.
“Yes,” Comey answered, quoting King Henry II. “It rings in my ears as kind of ‘Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?’”
“I was just going to quote that,” King replied.
