"He is not smart."
Oh, my goodness, the Pres sure knows how to hurt a guy.
Meanwhile, "no comment" on the actual details of Comey's report !
4
"Morally unfit". Let's be real Mr. Comey.
The moral degradation of politicians, and many public servants, has been escalating for many years. It did not start with our current corrupt president, nor will it end with him. Why?
Because there is no accountability. The public has lost faith and trust in all of you, regardless of your party or credentials.
So much energy and taxpayer dollars- have been wasted on the PR.
Hillary, Trump, Obama, the Bush boys, down to the local county government folks have profited from the public they swore to serve. Everyone cuts a deal. Many of you make millions from your book deals.
In the meantime -
Millions of children in this country go to bed hungry.
Millions of people are not receiving medical care because they cannot afford it.
Mortality rates are climbing.
The bridges, roads and public transportation -crumbling.
And yet- the defense industry, pharmaceutical, big agriculture, Wall St. -corporations are wallowing in taxpayer dollars because those in government sold their souls before they became lobbyists.
I know of several people who reported governnent corruption in Putnam, Rockland, Westchester County to the FBI under your tenure - nothing was done.
You failed to fire the rogue agents who fed info to Guiliani.
So please, all of you- be honest with yourselves.
There is more courage, wisdom, integrity to be found in those traumatized high school kids - we need to listen to those on the front lines to reclaim our country.
10
A week and a half before the 2016 presidential election, Comey informed Congress that he was reopening the investigation into Clinton's emails. Congress, in turn, informed the electorate.
Nobody mentioned the even-then-ongoing investigation into Russian interference in the election on Trump's behalf.
This is a blatant double standard.
The information wouldn't have changed the votes of die-hard Trump or Clinton supporters, couldn't have changed the ballots of early votes already cast prior to Comey's letter of October 28th - but the fence-sitters were susceptible to this development. Still, though scholars will debate about it for years to come, we will never definitively know whether Comey's biased conduct swayed the election results.
But no good will come of liberals - of whom I am one - impugning Comey's character as he himself had once impugned Secretary Clinton's. Robert Mueller may need Comey one day, and he will be more valuable to Mueller with his character and integrity more or less intact.
But I have zero intention of enriching Comey's bottom line by buying his book. He can carry on without my money, thanks.
1
Comey was general counsel at a hedge fund, and not just any old hedge fund, he was general counsel at the world's biggest hedge fund. Such a person has no business at all with being named FBI director. The financial services industry is rife with criminal conduct, and it conceivable that Comey was himself privy to such conduct while acting as general counsel. The director of the FBI should be a career agent or a DOJ attorney, they should never come from the private sector. Time spent in the private sector is time spent covering up fraud, theft, and violations of regulatory laws.
I can't for the life of me figure out why Obama picked Comey, the republican, to be his FBI director except that he might have done so at either Ray Dalio's request or in order to curry favor with Mr. Dalio. There really was no one else within the FBI or the Department of Justice that Mr. Obama could have chosen instead?
Frankly, Trump might be on to something when he says that Comey is guilty of criminal conduct himself.
1
Name any other potential Nominee that the Republic Senate would have Consented to.
1
@Purity Of . . .
Your last sentence in the first paragraph, wherein you make an unqualified, blanket statement that any and all working in the private sector have solely fraudulent motives and actions, utterly negates any credibility you might have retained in the second.
2
Takeout the Trash
Dump Trump
Comey, though not perfect, is ethical, fighting for a cause most do not understand. That truth and integrity matter.
5
@Charlie-Bribkle Uling:
AMEN!
"serial liar" is not name calling, it is a documented fact.
5
Comey for president?
2
@John Harstock:
As the current occupant of the Oval Office demonstrates on a daily basis, we couldn't do worse . . .
3
If there is a danger to the American Republic it is the Fascist behavior of people like James Comey who as the head of the FBI thinks it his right and duty to remove a duly elected President. Shades of "Seven Days in May" but done by the FBI, DOJ and CIA. This behavior is treason!
1
Treason is the only crime that is defined in the Constitution. Article III Section 3 details exactly what and when treason occurs and how it is punishable by Congress. Trump acts treasonous.
4
*alternate ending*
DJT: Do I look like a guy who needs hookers?
Comey: ... Lordy yes!
DJT: Yr fired!
Comey: :-)
9
I would be happy to listen to what Comey says after he's let Hillary slap him in the face. Repeatedly.
4
Other stains upon America:
• Slavery
• Racism
• McCarthyism
• Isolationism
• The Indian Removal Act of 1830; The Reservation System; The Dawes Act
Trump runs with some infamous friends, indeed.
11
A cesspool and Trump is treading water and flailing his arms.
4
Have you noticed that Dirty Donald routinely projects his own faults and shortcomings onto others? Almost any of his criticisms of others channel himself.
8
You're not the only one to recognize that Trump judges others by himself.
5
One hundred percent. Both obvious and stunning in its transparency, and going as far back as the campaign (and no doubt his whole life). He is the king of projection; I’m no psychiatrist, but it seems pathological in nature. And the latest insult hurled—“slimeball”—couldn’t be more accurate.
4
So true! Well said President Trump!
1
"...Mr. Comey insisted [impeachment] would just “let the American people off the hook.” He said the public was “duty bound” to vote Mr. Trump out of office in the next election."
We are not "duty bound" to vote Trump out...
America's founding fathers anticipated crooked corruption slithering past the checks and balances and getting elected, hence:
Article I, Section 2, "The House of Representatives shall...have the sole Power of Impeachment."
Article I, Section 3, "The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments..."
Article II, Section 4, "The President...shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of..."
Waiting for the next election would let, not the American people, but the Republicans in Congress off the hook...it is they who are "duty bound" to place the interests of the people and the country before their prosaic party politics, each member swore an oath (to God no less) to that effect. Alas, a paucity of honor doth exist.
5
@European Anerican:
A "paucity"?
More like an utter absence.
1
You're not the only one who wonders that:
"I have a basic question : Why were Official correspondence on Huma's home computer accessible to her husband?"
Why in the world were tens of thousands of official State Department emails downloaded to Huma Abedin's laptop, from which her husband, Anthony Weiner (aka "Carlos Danger") could have read them or even forward them to someone -- one of Weiner's teenage paramours, for example?
If this hadn't actually happened, I'd argue that it was impossible, that certainly there must be safeguards in place that prevent this sort of thing. I guess not.
While we certainly can debate whether Comey needed to report that the FBI had "re-opened" its investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails after learning of this, the issue wouldn't even have arisen if Huma Abedin hadn't copied tens of thousands of official State Department emails onto her home laptop, or perhaps if she'd picked some other computer that wasn't available to Carlos Danger.
Unbelievable, except that it actually happened.
1
Hillary took down Bernie, Comey took down Hillary, we got stuck with Trump. now Comey has totally lost his cool and is gunning for Trump.
what a bunch.
2
Reading about the interview is different from viewing it. It is very important to view the program before drawing conclusions. After watching the interview, I am not impressed with Comey. He seems to lack an ability to be decisive and make strong decisions.
For instance, he admits that his one-on-one dinner with Trump was very unusual and possibly improper. Rather than exit the dinner, he indulges Trump and dines with him. When Trump asks for his loyalty, he pledges honesty, but does not push back more strongly by telling Trump that his job is not to be loyal to him. He seems to let Trump push him around by not being more direct with Trump. I would expect a lot more backbone from an FBI director.
The rest of the interview story follows the same pattern, where Trump pushes Comey into postures that he is uncomfortable with, but Comey does not immediately resist Trump forcefully. Comey seems rather slow and weak, unable to take a strong stand when necessary. It seems Trump has an ability to take Comey by surprise, an idea that seems unlikely given Comey's former position.
I doubt Comey is as meek as he seems in the interview - there is more going on here than meets the eye. This book publicity tour he is on is odd (even in the era of Trump), and I don't buy the whole thing. From Hillary to Russia to hookers something doesn't add up here. The American people deserve a lot better than both Comey and Trump, both men who seem to like to manipulate the truth.
3
Seems to me t displayed himself as “morally unfit” for his present job years before he got it through the long out-dated system of the Electoral College.
2
I think Comey knows his mistakes were the difference in electing Trump, and now he's trying to make up for it. Even though most of what he says about Trump is the truth, it doesn't make up for the disaster his mistakes have already caused.
2
@jass200:
While I'm sure that Comey's timing vis-à-vis Clinton had some negative impact on her in the voting booth, the far bigger factor was simply that too many voters found her unlikable, and too many who were hardcore Republicans turned out to vote.
We have only ourselves to blame for the ongoing debacle that is Trump in the Oval Office.
Sad. Bigly Sad.
2
Trump shouldn’t be president, neither should Clinton, neither should Sanders. Comey should never have led the FBI.
In our efforts to resist Trump we can’t give a free pass to the left (or anyone). All must be accountable.
5
What Comey says about Trump is something we all know. There is nothing new here. However, coming from a high level former government employee, he adds his voice to others that feel the same way. Maybe if there is enough of an outcry, something can be done. After all, there are previsions in the Constitution to remove someone like Trump from office. It's called impeachment.
3
this madman is not satisfied with taking down Hillary, he wants Trump too.
1
trump is loving every minute of this.
Why not? It's a distraction from his legal troubles.
4
The sewer goes away when playing in it is not tolerated and people who play in it are ignored by all respectable people in public. This was how JFK's sexual adventures were handled.
When Twitter is the equivalent of the National Enquirer and tweets are reported the way the public pronouncements of dictators are, we will escape from the sewer. Such items are not reported verbatim; instead, they are reported as more of the same, and any elaboration will be an attempt to read between the lines rather than reporting what was said. When Trump's tweets are reported only as signs of how upset he is, and specific content is not covered, we will be out of the sewer.
1
He is overplaying his hand. His 15 minutes was over a long time ago.
It is so disappointing that this book needed to come from such a questionable source. A man who ran the FBI under GOP and Democratic administrations and was once highly regarded - still by many.
But his excuse for his truly shocking attack against Hilary is entirely implausible, just self serving - did he hate Hilary that much, or was he hoping to keep his job under Trump? Can't come up with anything else.
And he makes it so *.* obvious that his hatred of Trump is personal. As one example, after he acknowledges that he has no idea about whether or not that there is any truth to the "golden shower tape', how can he go on to say it may be? He should have shut up at that point. Though his attack on trump was much deserved, he made it to obviously personal for him. He should have been less smug and self-righteous when he absolutely had no right to be so.
Meantime, our country is in crisis mode. As the brilliant Russian expert and author Masha Gessen tells us, we are in a very dark time that feels like we are riding a bus down a mountain road towards a cliff, but nobody is sitting at the wheel. So many truly great books about this critical topic, I wish the attention was not focused on one so flawed.
Rani
It seems as though there is finally someone who is willing to play on Trumps field of insults that cut, diminish and attempt to dismiss. This is they guy that should have been on the platform pushing back when the republican potentials were given nicknames and insulted off the stage one by one as Trump attempted to win the nomination.
Trump is looking lack luster and coming up kind of short with his "Slimeball" remark about Comey. "Is that all you've got", I can hear Comey in my head.
Something tells me Trump has met a match and then some.
4
@GG:
Yup.
The book Comey’s book is fine, but we hardly need a book to tell us that Trump is not fit to be a citizen let alone the president.
3
Mr. Trump spends a lot of time and effort attacking the messenger, but the President puts not much effort in denying the truth of the statement regarding his fitness for office. Perhaps Mr. Trump does not want to perpetrate yet another lie by claiming to be fit for the office. He knows himself to be a charlatan.
4
@Neil Robinson:
Me thinks you give Trump far too much credit here . . .
I wonder why the weight of Comey's opinion about Trump has more weight than we ordinary citizens and makes big news?
1
@Turgut:
Hmmmm, let's see now . . .
Perhaps --just maybe -- the fact that Mr Comey actually spent time with Trump, had conversations (and meals) with Trump, and -- hello? -- worked for Trump --- these little details would probably stand as explicit evidence that Mr Comey knows Trump MUCH better than you and I, and 99.999% of the rest of your fellow citizens.
It's not that difficult to future out, really.
1
If Comey is going to go down in history as a real patriot, he should commit the profits from his book to social justice. If he profits from sensationalism, his views are suspect. I believe him. To gain global respect, he will have to relinquish his personal benefit
2
James Comey says that the proper way to get rid of Trump is
to vote him out of Office.
I disagree. If there is legally even only a slim Chance to impeach him,
DO IT. In Terms of Moral as a Person and Performance as a President,
this act (shortcut) is overdue.
Why wait for another 31 months. Apart from limiting further damage to the country, materially and morally. Trump must not have a Chance to
sneak through the WH back door, but TRUMP MUST BE HUMILATED, being the first President to be impeached - for everybody to see. Also as a warning for his successor (s). What an Episode.
7
@Rolf Schmid:
You had me with you all the until the BLOCK LETTERS.
Despite loathing Trump as I do, and the long-lasting damage he's inflicting on the Office of The President, the world's environment, immigrants and in and in, "shouting" that *anyone* should "be shamed" is purile and undermines you credibility as a mature adult.
Public shaming went the way of the stockades in public squares. If you'd like to return to those days leave the rest of us out.
There is a rule of law to which all Americans, regardless of rank are held.
That is the great lie that must at all costs be upheld and reinforced by politicians, corporations and the media. But Mr Trump (for once) spoke the truth when he said that he could shoot someone in broad daylight on 5th Avenue and it wouldn't affect him in any way.
Trump has been a money launderer for the Russian mafia for decades. This is the worst kept secret in America, but Comey, Mueller, the NY Times etc are all pondering whether anything untoward may have occurred, such as an illegal campaign contribution to a porn star, which could (horrors) result in a fine.
We are watching a slow-motion whitewashing of a vast criminal enterprise. It's a disgrace, but so is America.
5
James Comey was an incompetent FBI director. Every important decision was made wrong. Liberals, Conservatives, Democrats and Republicans should be glad he is gone.
5
I don't think this is as important as The New York Times claims in this article. A media blitz? In this age, under this man? Does it matter? What can Mr. Comey possibly say or do, anyway? He's saying what is evident: this man is unfit for office. All of what he is saying is something we already knew about, basically. Of course, Trump can never be calm or graceful under fire. He thinks it is a virtue to lash out all of the time. He will find out that nothing like that is a fail-proof way of going about life, and sooner or later he will fall. It won't be pretty. Let them all write books, including Tillerson, historians will need a lot of material to go through in the future. This is an abnormal man behaving abnormally in office. Trump is, as has been pointed out many times, a great national security threat. I disagree with Comey on one point: we do not have to tolerate someone who violates the Constitution. Impeachment and removal are in the Constitution for a reason. So, if Trump merits impeachment, he should be impeached. He's made a laughing stock out of the country and has sent into madness and chaos. What awful times to witness in this country.
8
The biggest difference between Donald Trump and James Comey, completely aside from one being president and one being former FBI director, is I believe Mr. Comey. He appears much more human if you will and without the persistent equivocation of Mr. Trump.
7
He's making money off the "Trump brand". $ is his "higher authority", obviously.
Trump is right when he says his brand is the biggest brand *ever* and the amount of money made off just uttering his name is truly incalculable and certainly exponentially greater than any other "name brand" in history,
And Trump pulls all the strings -- he sets the "theme" and agenda for how his name shall be capitalized on in the marketplace by 7am every morning,, seven days a week.
4
Public assault on a sitting POTUS? Hardly, NY Times. What about the Trump’s 15 month assault against our Constitution, rule of law, citizens, allies, values, etc?
I was hoping that Republicans would join Democrats in denouncing Trump. But they’ve been cowards who have placed their party before our county. It’s about time that someone spoke up! Keep talking, Comey!
9
Looks the Art of King making is a dangerous sport!
I am a democrat and voted for Hillary. Like many others, I also initially blamed Comey for his late letter to congress about Hillary's emal on Humaidi'e HOME computer. All blames aside, I have a basic question : Why were Official correspondence on Huma's home computer accessible to her husband? Hillary explained that her use of home computer was a mistake although it was professionally managed by ensure security. But she did not properly managed her staff re secure communication. But for Huma's HUGE wrongful behavior, Hillary would have been president. If Hillary were President, would Huma be still doing the same? I wonder.
4
Mr. Comey is promoting his book and expressing deep concern about this president (that is widely shared). I don’t see it as an “assault” on Mr. Trump.
4
I get Comey. He is a mixed up guy in a world where the change is on steroids and the truth lies. He did violate many rules, but as we all have seen, and heard last night, his reason was morally correct.
How can you let a man, like Trump who turns a matter of national security, into something about him. It is actually very chilling if you think about it.
What’s even more chilling, is the fact that there are actual people, who have a very real voice, and support Trump, especially Devin Nunez(R) California.
If what a very human Comey said last night, didn’t rock your world and open your eyes, you are either blind or dead.
2
Comey did not cause HRC to lose the election. She did that all by herself. Now I hope Comey does actually help to take down "slimeball" Trump.
1
Ryan is still silent, and moot.
And McCpnnell stays mute.
Comey alone has the jam to speak the truth.
6
We all know that what Comey did to Hillary Clington in the waning days of the election campaign amounted to a "Bozo the Clown" stunt, but this country is sicker than what one little Director of the FBI can be blamed for. I find it difficult to believe that all the lies and black tricks the Russians did to Hillary Clinton wouldn't by themselves throw the election to the lying cheat in the White House (whose name I can't bear to use). We all know that Hillary's campaign was lax in dealing with three or four prime states (Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and possibly another), and coasting along in any way was something that contributed to the result. The accompanying article about Hillary supporters hating Comey misses the point - that Comey in his bumbling is finally coming out with a scathing indictment that might contribute to the end of this nightmare.
2
@David Score:
Thank you for one of best articulated and clear-eyed analysis of the current quagmire.
Many -- MANY -- can learn from you.
Let's see who I should believe here: A director of the FBI and who seems honest, perhaps a tad misguided, and wants to adhere to facts OR a bully guy who constantly belittle and makes exaggerated figures for his inauguration address claiming millions and millions in the audience. Hmmm. Who should I choose??? Oh yeah, I believe the FBI guy. The other guy is a ...... fill in your name for him.
2
At first I thought Comey was just exacerbating a volatile situation; there's been so much press about Trump's relationship with the truth, about his thuggish tendencies. I also at first thought that this kind of bright light shone on the President would have an unfortunate, and non-productive backlash, even for those of us who want to see Trump toppled.
But listening to Comey last night, I felt differently. No one else, I mean no one with the platform and the audience that the former FBI head enjoys, has spoken truth to power in this way, not bothering to mince words. And his delivery weren't inflammatory, even though the message certainly was.
It seems only those public officials who no longer hold an office are willing to speak out like this. Even so, despite some obvious misjudgments, Comey's willingness to admit error, to be forthcoming in such a bold manner, showed the mettle that one longs to see in our leaders, and almost never ever experiences anymore.
Go Comey. You've going to get lots of backlash for this, but don't be daunted.
4
Simply put, Comey should have warned everyone that Trump was under investigation prior to the election. The public deserved to know, but Comey only saw fit to reveal the Clinton investigation, and past that, to keep it in the public eye. His justifications ring hollow at this point, and whether or not he likes it and however he tries to explain it away, it doesn't look honest or forthright. At best it's terrible, one-sided decision-making at worst there's a dotted line between Comey and Trump's election.
3
'While many of Mr. Trump’s critics believe that the proper remedy for his perceived transgressions is impeachment, Mr. Comey insisted that would just “let the American people off the hook.” He said the public was “duty bound” to vote Mr. Trump out of office in the next election.'
Yes, we need to let the tariffs, healthcare, and welfare cuts hurt the very people that voted Trump.
You can twist Comey's actions any which way to fit whatever agenda you support. But, as far as his opinion that Trump is morally unfit for the presidency, Mr. Comey is spot on.
6
Fair point:
"He is a real estate tycoon, not a single real estate tycoon in history has ever not been a shady character."
That may be an overstatement, but it's certainly a fair description of Trump. People knew what he was when they voted for him -- he never tried to hide the ugly truth. And he's pretty much behaved as he said he would. He hasn't built the wall, or repealed Obamacare, but he's certainly tried.
Personally, I've never thought well of Trump, and the Access Hollywood tape would have caused me not to vote for him if I hadn't already decided not to. But consider what other voters faced. Their only practical alternative was Hillary Clinton -- "likable enough," perhaps, but not someone who had any particular qualifications to be President -- other than being married to a former President. Certainly one can understand the desire to elect the first female President, but should that first female President just be a woman who's married to a former male President, or should that first female President be someone who's made it on her own (such as Angela Merkel or Margaret Thatcher or Theresa May did)? Does anyone really think Hillary Clinton got elected Senator, or was picked for Secretary of State, or was nominated to run for President, for any reason other than that she's married to a former President? I can think of at least a dozen women, and men, who are more "qualified" than Hillary Clinton to be President, though none of them is married to a former President.
1
" Does anyone really think Hillary Clinton got elected Senator, or was picked for Secretary of State, or was nominated to run for President, for any reason other than that she's married to a former President? "
YES.
2
Although I disagree with Comey’s handling of the Clinton e-mail investigation announcements right before an election, there is no doubt in my mind that Comey is an honourable and ethical man.
It is nice to see Comey speaking out as a citizen. People say he is out of bounds and his book shouldn’t have been published.
I disagree. These are extraordinary times and the pResident has repeatedly show his disdain for the rule of law. We as a nation require an extraordinary person like Comey to stand up against the mafia man occupying the White House.
Radha
US Expat who votes in US elections
2
Don Trump can tweet whatever he likes, it makes no difference. I'll take Comey's rectitude, exagerated and self-serving as it may be, over Don Trump's even more exagerated and self-serving fabrications any day.
1
Trump, “thou dost protest too much.” Most people, of “above average intellegence” - and no one will convince me Trump belongs in that group - would know to keep their mouths shut.
2
Why is everyone so up in arms about this? It's not like any sane, decent, law-abiding, Constitution-loving person doesn't know who Donald Trump is and what he is exactly all about.
He is everything Mr. Comey says about him. Thank God somebody finally screamed it from the media rafters. After all, the media is one of the reasons we have this awful man in our White House, or has everyone forgotten Les Moonves' disgusting statement about how bad Trump may be for the country, he was sure good for CBS' bottom line?
Of course everyone is now taking sides on how bad/good Mr. Comey is suddenly. I certainly don't agree with everything he did to sabotage Hillary in the election, but I believe him. I believe every single word he has said about Trump. Anyone who doesn't is truly a fool.
3
Even imperfect people can be patriotic.
2
One man served his country first in Viet Nam and then in a law enforcement career. The other had bone spurs and grabbed crotches. Not hard to pick which one is unfit.
6
Someone asked WHY it seemed to me that Comey seemed surprised to have concluded that "truth" and "integrity" are attributes our leaders should have, as if he'd just stumbled upon that realization.
I'd read the interview transcript and draw your own conclusions (ABC broadcast only a very small portion of the interview, but, to ABC's credit, you can find a transcript of the whole thing on the ABC website).
I also note that, while Comey and his assistants, having arrived in John Ashcroft's hospital room shortly before Dick Cheney, refused to go along with Cheney's request that they OK the federal government's "extra-legal" surveillance, Comey stresses that that appeared to come as a big surprise to Cheney.
I never liked Cheney, but I never thought he was stupid or didn't evaluate people accurately. Apparently he thought Comey would do his bidding. Comey says he didn't, and I believe him, but one does wonder why Cheney was so surprised by Comey's principled stand. Did he have reason to think that Comey would NOT be constrained by principles? Why does Comey think this was such a big surprise to Cheney?
3
One can only weep for the state of our nation at this time. We have sunk to the depths of a warped third world kleptocracy. I am so sad.
15
ok. thanks for the contribution.
2
@MSW:
Indeed.
What's tragic, and which will ultimately lead to the demise of our nation, is that fully 50% of our populous is oblivious to this.
Sad. Bigly Sad.
2
Somewhat contrary to Comey's claims of Trump's moral unfitness and possible outre sexual escapades, I have it on good authority that Donald and Melania are about to release a G-rated sex tape that has been deemed suitable for all elementary school students. It is expected to be distributed to all public elementary schools along with various rifles and handguns.
4
@Crusader Rabbit:
Awesome!
Perhaps the sequel (and you know there will be one) will feature flame throwers as upgraded accessories!
Watch out, Bad Guys!
While Betsy DeVos will be intimately involved in the arms distribution arrangements to the schools, she does not appear as a participant in the sex tapes.
1
We will see how it plays out when someone "calls out" Trump, which is what I call what Comey is doing. No one dared to do it during the Presidential campaign, or at least they did not do it successfully. That did not work.
I thought Comey cast himself in a credible and honorable light, and did not get in the mud during the interview. But my Trump-supporter-friends thought he was a liar and they believe he belongs in jail for some crime that they cannot explain.
10
Well, of course, they think he belongs in jail. Here on the outside people might actually hear what he has to say.
2
Everyone is entitled to write their book and use the words they choose. I am a fan of Comey despite the fact that I believe he inadvertently short-changed my vote for Clinton by his announcement 11 days before election day. Contrary to a comment
Please, for God's sake, lock Trump up.
17
April 16, 2018
So goes the Trumpian drama of legalities for his political presidential attainment in several arenas; all of which exhibit breaking blatantly the law (‘s) of the land. Trump is best to default to what is best for governing and operating within the proper legal choices that every politician needs to respect and honor not just for personal wisdom but for the collective guidance and enforcement of what is stand by, and live for – as that if you will the perfection of all levels of public servants can see the light and truth that guides and are enforced to function as unequivocal operational manual. That is America’s universal canon and those that misjudge or ignore will fail and be held to account for correctional behavior will keep all us in equality for pursuit of happiness; as we Americans demand, enforce and will adjudicate every instance of avoidance, evasion, or worst personal attempts to conflagrate destruction with impunity. We don’t roast political animals but offer the light path that is our shared trust for the best in and of America’s politics for every and levels and from towns to White House: the rule of equal justice is grace.
Jja Manhattan, N.Y.
1
But so what?
"Comey indicated he felt like he met a mob boss."
I don't doubt that Comey honestly holds the opinions he holds, but do you really care what James Comey's opinions are? On anything?
I sure don't. Reviewers all say that Comey's book doesn't contain any new facts, and all of the old ones were reported long ago. I paid careful attention to what Comey said happened during various events, but I did that long ago. Why would I, or anyone else, want to read the same thing again? And why in the world would I, or anyone else, care at all what James Comey's opinion is about anything? If he's got some new facts to report, great -- let's hear them. But all reports indicate he doesn't -- no new facts, just James Comey's opinions about facts we knew long ago. Who cares?
2
"James Comey's opinions about facts we knew long ago. Who cares?"
Obviously, an awful lot of people seem to care or
you wouldn't be so agitated.
2
"....but do you really care what James Comey's opinions are? On anything?"
YES.
2
This country is messed up because people love facts when it's convenient.
At first Trump was singing Comey's praises until...
Democrats were cursing Comey for Hillary's, but now they want him to run for president in 2020.
1
Trump is morally unfit to be in anyone's company but for mob bosses and real estate developers as proven by many sources.
8
@Frank Jasko:
Amen!
Comey's credibility is greatly compromised by his lack of probity, gravitas, and a laser-like focus on the facts....all qualities possessed by Robert Mueller. Mueller has bi-partisan respect, and is feared by Trump and others, because his total absence of ego eliminates the distractions so many others in Washington are subject to. I believe everything Comey is saying, but he is a very tainted messanger.
3
This is watershed moment in the history of our country.
It is time we ALL behaved like people summoned to appear for jury duty.It's time we either started listening without prejudice or took ourselves out of the pool by openly declaring we've already made up our mind.
It is time we all started taking this seriously, not as something to argue about "from the gut," but as something requiring our deepest possible consideration.
It's not a horse race we're talking about. It's not even politics.
We're talking about really fundamental things, like right and wrong, truth and falsehood.
We have two witnesses -- one is saying "white," and the other, "black."
They can't both be right.
Even if, in their hearts, each of these two men believe he's telling the unvarnished truth, WE the people must decide who is the more believable based on what each of them claims.
It's the very idea of America we're talking about here.
2
@David:
You, sir, have written the most important and imperative opinion I've yet to read in the Times, and it's akin to icy clear and cold water to one stranded in the summer in the Sahara.
It's also an unspeakable tragedy that your cogent call to mature and sane action will go utterly unheaded.
A pity, that.
Sad. Bigly Sad.
1
This episode in American politics is absolutely sickening and very sad. This, despite trump, will pass in due time. America is resilient and will once again rise over these destructive politics. Justice will be served.
MCC
3
@MCC:
Based on both the results of the last General Election, and the utterly inane behaviour of our populous since, I'm no longer optimistic in our nation's "resiliency". That quaint notion of "United We Stand, Divided We Fall" has evaporated from the collective consciousness, and in that vacuum are the ever more toxic seeds of animosity and extremism.
Sad. Bigly Sad.
1
Standing up to a bully is often a lone position. Someone had to do it sooner or later. Hopefully citizens can put their outrage at this situation into electing honorable persons into office during the midterm elections. The best revenge is voting well.
10
Kellyanne Conway and Chris Cuomo had an unusually long interview this morning on "Fake News Network." Kellyanne was bemoaning how awful Comey was to her boss. I had hoped Cuomo would ask her why it was okay for her boss to likewise belittle his opponents with middle school - type behavior.
The name-calling by both Trump and Comey ( supposed adults) is appalling. To paraphrase an earlier President, "our long national nightmare is not over."
2
I noticed that Trumps approval number has gone up, which is disappointing. I had assumed that in addition to racists, many Trump supporters were voters who were just tired of the gridlock. If, after 14 months, they still approve of his immoral and unprincipled behavior, I have to change my evaluation of that particular voter group. Apparently they find his crude behavior acceptable.
7
We may learn more in November. (fingers crossed)
You mean the 30 percent of Trump voters who voted for Obama?
That pretty much describes Trump. Lock him up.
6
Whether Mr. Comey is a likable man or not, it's refreshing to have someone of his caliber standing up and saying what we all know to be true. I've been gobsmacked at the national press's reticence to report on Trump's unsuitability for office journalistically, and to treat is as the serious news it should be.
Now Mr. Comey's book and interviews are giving them a way to discuss Mr. Trump's character and conduct as an issue of national security and confidence, rather than as a partisan diversion or soap opera. We could still use some responsible journalistic coverage of the topic, but this is an improvement.
16
The World Press must be accustomed to the profuse lying by donald trump.
It hardly bears repeating since everyone on Earth must know by now that trump is a confabulator par excellence.
9
I read in the last few minutes (from other news sources since the release of this article), that another of the three clients the FIXER Cohen has represented in the last year is FOX Nooz Master of Hate, Fear, & Propaganda, Sir Sham Hannity.... Surprise, Surprise, Surprise... The Chief of the LIAR’s Network is neck-deep in the muck of this criminal TRUMP enterprise...
Americas ugliest heads are about to roll... And real Americans couldn’t be more pleased...
24
The Liar in Chief is truly a stain, a stain like any other.
Can America get rid of it?
A powerful cleanser and remover will be needed.
17
How on earth did Bill Clinton's boy George Stephanopoulos keep his head from exploding when Comey called liars morally unfit to be president?
https://emcphd.wordpress.com
5
Hey Rev. I bet most of the folks commenting here don't understand what you meant. Excellent - and you said it in one sentence.
Be well.
For Brewster Millions: Who said Comey lies? Only Trump and his Fox cronies. Most Americans know that Comey has a fine reputation as a man of integrity. His colleagues testify to that and so do I. and so does his distinguished career.
The president, on the other hand is a barefaced liar and there is plenty of real proof to substantiate it in his outrageously fake tweets that have disproven by facts.
25
Thank you FBI Director for Service to our Nation.
Love it!
23
Calling Trump a serial liar is the tip of the iceberg. You need a DSM manual to find all the personality disorders for Trump. One or two should disqualify him for office much less a big chunk of the DSM.
16
@George: I'm going to bet that the next volume of the DSM will necessitate updating to accommodate the new variants of psychosis Trump has so effusively brought (tweeted) out to the world stage.
Mr Comey help Trump get elected and now he wants to get help him impeached.
As Richard Wolffe wrote today in The Gardian: "The fact that Comey's email declarations helped Clinton lose the election, and the fact that Trump himself employed Comey, is neither here nor there." Wolffe continues: "Possibly, maybe. Comey just can't help having it both ways: Trump is possibly a lying mafia boss who might possibly destroy the US as Comey knows and loves it. But Comey couldn't possibly have tipped the election to such a man because his action possibly made no difference."
He might be morally superior to the president but he has not taken responsibility of his actions right before the election and the final chapter of his book will be written by HISTORY, not Mr Comey.
That Trump is "morally unfit' to be president is quite an understatement. In reality, Mr Comey has not told us anything what we didn't know long before the election other than he is a morally superior bureaucrat.
5
Comey hasn't done anyone any favors with his book release and interviews. In fact, he's making Trump appear more normal. This will embolden Trump's supporters and increase the likelihood of a Trump reelection.
2
RE-election?
Do you really think he'll finish THIS term?
1
At this point, it's highly unlikely the DT will stand for reelection.
Indeed, it is increasingly questionable
whether or not he will finish THIS term.
2
What has Trump done that is so bad, other than the tax cut? I understand the need to demonize Trump by associating him with all sorts of graft and sleaze, but is there anyone out there who didn't already realize that that was his nature? He is a real estate tycoon, not a single real estate tycoon in history has ever not been a shady character.
Blaming the democrats' loss on Trump colluding with the Russians excuses their poor electoral strategy and the fact that the party is now almost totally bereft of ideas. On some issues - trade, infrastructure investment, immigration, and foreign affairs - Trump has actually taken positions to the left of the democrats. Yes, believe it or not, Trump's position on immigration is further to the left: immigrants lower wages, and illegal immigrants are especially harmful to the wages of low-skill workers, those are indisputable facts.
Trump has yet to exceed his constitutional authority in any fashion whatsoever. He had the authority to dismiss Comey and would have the same authority to fire the special prosecutor as well as all of the political appointees in the federal bureaucracy. That is one of the perks of being president and why elections are so important.
Maybe the democrats should have attempted to win over voters in the Midwest? Maybe the democrats should not have given up on the white working class? Maybe the democrats should stand for more than just identity politics and that they aren't republicans?
6
The fact that you don't see constant, unrelenting lying and childish insults and obvious ignorance of the issues all to be disqualifying for the presidency is really shocking. The glaring conflicts of interest, the unamerican attacks on the press, the vilification of everyone who disagrees with him or criticizes him ... are all these things just fine and dandy with you? Really?
9
Purity of Essence says "Trump has yet to exceed his constitutional authority in any fashion whatsoever".
Really? Is that why the courts have stepped in and blocked, delayed or eviscerated numerous executive orders that have come out of this White House?
Why just last Friday a federal judge blocked the military from instituting Trump's order to ban transgender people from serving. So where are you getting your facts?
7
Those Midwest voters are going to wish they voted for Clinton before long and they are going to be eating a lot of bacon.
1
The ongoing, personal criminality of this president and his criminal enterprise has already convinced me that he can, and maybe anyone can, once high enough, operate above the law. If we have been unable to remove him by now, then this American experiment based on the rule of law, due process and true un-fitness for office is a farce. He couldn’t be any more farcical. Apparently, he can now rob the same bank every day at 2pm. Or bomb the same country. Are we really waiting for him to take it to the next level?
12
Basically nothing the world didn’t already know ad nauseam.
Hopefully Muller will survive and not prove to be the Rube Goldberg of special prosecutors.
Whatever is forthcoming regarding Trump, it will in the final analysis require right minded political will and truly honorable and courageous action by the Congress. How likely that is is anyone’s guess.
7
The most striking moment of last night's program was in the b-roll — the shot of Trump in the Oval Office, surrounded by the "family," beckoning Comey with open arms — it was like watching a grotesque orange version of Michael Corleone in "The Godfather."
It was creepy and surreal and bone-chilling. All you need to know about Trump in two seconds of video.
Anyone who takes issue with Comey's mob comparison isn't paying attention.
21
Comey's comments may be ad hominem in nature but he's regrettably correct!
8
The irony of the situation is not lost on me...Comey got Trump elected and his firing will likely get Trump impeached. Karma.
7
Comey will likely suffer impeachment as well - as a witness that is.
Mr.Comey is wrong in stating that Trump does not represent the core values of America. Trump does represent the core values of today's America. America knows his ethical and moral values before they voted for him. The only difference between Hillary & Bill vis-à-vis Trump is style of spoken language. One speaks by exploiting the skill of verbal dexterity and another speaks with no skill in verbal dexterity. Both exploited their office to enrich themselves. Just like Bill Clinton won twice and so will be Trump. If at all, Trump doing a great service by showing that the so called 'American values' is a myth.
1
She hit me first !!!
The sad little man made his intentions known when he refused to take any action against Ms. Clinton.
2
Comey has the right to publish his account, just like most of retired public official in an important position, especially he has been maligned by the left and the right, especially Liar-in-Chief.
I have always felt it is too convenient for Hillary to blame Comey for her own loss.
To me, Hillary should bear her own responsibility for.
She should have worked harder by visiting those states that mattered. She didn't.
She should have followed the governmental email rules. She didn't. Thus, she was being investigated and gave Republicans an opening to assault her.
With all her edge as a front runner---gaining more media coverage, easy draw for campaign donation, she couldn't have won against Sanders easily.
With her profile as Secretary of State, ex-Senator, ex-First Lady, she couldn't have won easily against Trump whose dirty laundry in his checked past could have failed any presidential candidate.
So for her to blame Comey, it has always been too convenient an excuse for me.
I learned one thing--people in power who have grown to become entitled always blame others for their own mistakes.
10
let's not forget that hillary colluded with the DNC to get bernie out of the election process. they both admitted it and if we all remember, those were the emails that the Russians hacked and made public. so how is it that we aren't upset at the DNC and hillary for "election meddling"? we want to hang the Russians but we let hillary off like nothing happened? my, my the hypocrisy...
1
The comments here are so interesting. "If you're gonna say bad things about my man, I'm gonna blast her, instead. She hit me first !!!"
What background checks are carried out for presidential candidates? And if not, why not? Everyone else who handles state secrets and classified material has to pass a background check.
19
Will not work. People already knew that Clinton, W Bush and Trump were draft dodgers. Obviously this does not matter for the majority of the people.
I agree with Comey. True closure for the people of the USA, would be to end the American nightmare at the ballot box.
10
Comey is speaking complete truth to power. He is calling it as he sees it. He, a Republican, is saying what has to be said. This entire nation is smeared and degraded by the current occupant of the White House. Until Trump goes, we will remain in the gutter and we will have no moral standing in a deeply troubled world. Trump's presidency is hastening the demise of functioning democracies around the world.
9
Well now we know for sure why most citizens had a reason to be uncomfortable with the FBI....
2
One can say Trump is morally unfit to be president, however is not democracy working when the man elected is a perfect representation of those who elected him?
4
Brent: Trump did NOT win the popular vote. The majority of Americans did not vote for Trump. He is not my president and never will be.
14
Brent, yes and no. Your question is important. I agree Trump is a perfect representation of those who elected him. First, the founders did not allow the president to be elected directly by the people. Even today, many if not all members of the Electoral College had the option to vote their personal choice, rather than for the vote-winner in their state. Second, what is wrong with Trump voters that they want someone as unqualified as themselves to be president? Democracy simply cannot work under those circumstances. Third, Jefferson (for one) believed our nation needed an informed electorate to work. I'm sure he meant more informed than "oh yeah, the guy from Celebrity Apprentice!"
6
Personally, I can't even IMAGINE voting for someone who spoke the words Trump spoke on the Access Hollywood tape. But Trump did get elected, fair and square. A principal, if not THE principal, premise of democracy is that no particular individual -- not a king, not a pope or a bishop, nobody -- is better equipped than any other individual to decide who the leaders should be. EVERYBODY gets to vote.
Most countries modify that basic democratic principle in some way; for example, our Constitution established the "electoral college," or "state by state" method of picking Presidents; other countries (the UK, for example) use a "parliamentary system" in which voters pick MPs and those MPs, in turn, choose the leaders.
But, modified or not, democracy calls for pretty much every adult to get a vote. It's OK to bar children, or felons, or mentally defective people, but the permissible exclusions are few. It's not OK, for example, to deny the vote to certain races or genders, or to allow it only to "educated" or "informed" voters (especially when the people clamoring for those "qualifications" will abandon them in a New York minute if they're confident a voter group will behave as they'd like).
Another feature of democracy is the requirement that election-losers accept the results. You may not like who won, but you still have to pay your taxes, for example. You'll get another bite at the apple soon enough.
Not sure that the many Trump-haters on this message board accept this.
1
What did Comey think? Investigating both Clinton and Trump. Comey indicated he felt like he met a mob boss. Hmmmm.....all politics is like the families fighting for power. However, the sides use words and lies to bump each other off rather than guns. I found Comey’s interview less than candid....the new word for lie! « Meeting alone with the President is most unusual. « Comey omitted he met with Obama one-on-one several times......the guy got himself down in the weeds.....too bad.
1
Ok Ok, So this guy have the chance to sink two presidency....I hope this guy and trump move to another country and shut their mouths.
Investigate RNC. Elliott Broidy and Michael Cohen were both on RNC; both are now under criminal investigation. Ray Sipe registered Florida voter
10
investigate DNC and hillary. Oh wait, we don't have to. the emails leaked by the Russian hackers showed the collusion between them and their attempts to get bernie our of the election. and they both admitted that the emails were factual and true. and we did nothing about this and aren't outraged over that "election meddling"?
Lie and then write a book about your lies. Promote your book by making headline grabbing statements that are nothing more than your opinion. The man is laughing at the public's gullibility. Comey is the stain on America.
5
@Brewster Millions:
Clearly you're looking through the wrong end of the telescope.
Ah well: P. T. Barnum still lives!
2
Comey said he was so uncomfortable to be in the same room with Trump and a whole lot of others, he tried to BLEND IN WITH THE BLUE DRAPES in order not to be noticed.
How desperately did you want that job, Niebuhr?
Some of his admissions such as using polling data to make decision about announcing reopening of Clinton investigation and deliberately leaking information - classified or not - may actually put him in legal jeopardy.
Try blending in when you are in orange jump suit, dude.
5
he already had that job...
The color of Trump would look good on you.
4
He already had the job.
His reasons for using polling data were rational, legitimate, and legal.
Deliberately releasing unclassified information is legal and can't put him in legal jeopardy. He didn't "leak" anything, including classified information.
These are Trump/Fox/Breitbart talking points, and they're all beside the point. Please tell us what you think about Trump's dishonesty, amorality, and contempt for the rule of law.
5
Comey makes himself the poster boy of a fired, disgruntled ex-employee. He lashes out with Trumpian ad hominem cheap shots at Trump. And, of course, Trump will never allow himself to be outdone in that department.
What on earth is motivating Comey stoop to Trump’s level? It’s easy: There’s lots of money to be made in maximizing the publicity of his book. He may look like a jerk, which he probably is, but he’s laughing all the way to the bank.
Trump and Comey: two unseemly peas in a pod.
3
once again, the "president" of the US proves that all of Comey's words are true and many more words left unspoken are true as well. Trump is the actual "fake" president,and the fake human being. Trump pretends to be a man,but it is obvious that he is nothing but a real psychopath, raised in military school,to serve his egomaniac of a father, a disinterested mother and a family of dreadful family members.
trump showed all the characteristics early in life, that he shows now. He was well known to the american people before becoming the president,well known to the business world as a charlatan and a liar.
He was a failure as a man,husband,father, businessman, and a failure as a decent,honest,law-abiding american. there is nothing secret or hidden about him.His ego demands causes him to say and do all his obscenities publicly.what is really demoralizing is how many americans support him because they are more like him than unlike him.They admire him,support him, because they are like him,and wish they could BE HIM!
6
@Lenteach:
ABSOLUTELY.
The saddest bit is your last sentence, which unfortunately rings all too true.
Sad. Bigly Sad.
2
Comey is proving himself to be just as self-serving, petty, and destructive as the person he helped put in the White House.
5
The venom spitting from the mouths of the former directors of the CIA, NSA and now the FBI are despicable. Unbelievable how unprofessional and vile these people are. How in the world did they ever rise to lead these critical agencies responsible for America's security? Thank goodness they are history.
2
Dispicable. Vile. Unprofessional.....mild descriptions of Trump.
8
All three agencies, hunh? Maybe they're right.
2
Trump is right, Comey is really a "slime ball." And, Comey is right, Trump is unfit for office. The tragedy of course is that it is probably Comey who got Trump into office, with his "letter."
He's a "slime ball" because he pretends that he didn't know the consequences of his "letter." He's not being truthful when he says that. He can't have been so naive, of course.
He was acting as a partisan hack. The question is why did he then turn on Trump????
2
There is only one person in this conversation that is the liar and is a self-serving, racist, ignorant man and that is Trump. Comey has faults and he has admitted to them and explained that perhaps another person would have acted differently and maybe he should have too, but Comey's faults are a mere grain of sand compared to beach full of sand that represents the reprehensible conduct, behavior and morality that is Donald Trump. Trump is as disgraceful and disgusting as they come on a national and global stage. I applaud Comey for sharing the inside scoop of what most of us already knew existed with Trump and his administration through the fine work of journalists and the media exposing him. What we are witnessing now is Trump and the WH fighting back furiously to smear the truth again. Most people know who to believe and we will voice it coming the next election in 2018 and then in 2020.
7
There is nothing surprising about Trump's reaction - he learned to viciously attack his attackers early in his career. Trump should have been grateful to Comey for helping him gain office with his untimely attacks on Hillary. But Trump is unstable and out of control. He is an obscene racist and liar brought to us by the Republican Party. In fact Trump is now the Republican Party - they are all a disgrace to our nation. Every citizen who wants to restore respect for our country must work to throw Trump and his band of GOP hooligans out of office.
6
Comey and cronies decided.
Trump must not be President. Trump doesn’t understand the Washington thing. And he might shake up their little world.
Except, actively interfering in elections is illegal.
Before all is said and done Comey will be in prison.
As for any stupid obstruction of justice charge, all Trump will have to do is run tape after tape after tape of leading Democrats denouncing Comey and calling for his firing.
3
Except that's not why Trump actually fired Comey. According to Trump.
There will be no charges against Comey, certainly none that will stick.
All red herrings and distractions anyway. Please tell us what you think about Trump's relationship with the truth, morality, and the law.
3
This is yet more embarrassment to add to our deluge of embarrassment since November of 2016. I think Comey has a point, and unfortunately he has wade into the swamp to make it. trump is a stain on everyone; on Comey, and on us.
3
Trump/Sanders alt-fact: Comey ( a Republican) is a “disgraced partisan hack”
See the recent Vox article on why Comey isn't a hero. He's a bigot and a racist who is almost directly responsible for Trump being in the White House to begin with. Stop believing for even a second that he's some sort of hero for standing up to Trump. He's just as bad as Trump if not worse.
3
Can we please stop calling him "President" Trump? The man is a fraud and a conman and a criminal. We shouldn't be dignifying him with any kind of title.
He is simply "Trump"
9
Reality check these storys more aimed at american people then have any substance . He said she said is all about smoking real issues at hand like jobs pay liviing wage still being exported alaarming rate as baby boomers retire from jobs in skilled work force. Mean while the government continues to spend billions on imports for government use like computors for governmen tuse. Zero accountabilty doesnt pay taxs jobs pay taxs.
Why has he lost credibility? The hands,hair and skin are so over the top why would they not be mentioned. If the President wore a bozo the clown suit should he have pretended it wasn’t there? Trump is a very odd person, mentioning how peculiar Trump is just sets the stage for the event.
3
Yeah, no duh Comey. I don't need him to tell me that. He's out to sell books - I trust almost nothing of what you say, except for maybe the painfully obvious. And all you Hillary fans and Democrats are helping the man who destroyed her campaign get rich - congrats!
I love Comey!
Let‘s keep it simple.
1
President Trump, I'm sure ABC would be more than happy to grant you a 5 hour interview with George Stephanopoulis for you to present your side of the story!
4
James Comey fits the disgruntled fired employee mode, He still refuses to acknowledge he was wrong to call a press conference on July 5, 2016, to proclaim Hillary Clinton should not be charged with mishandling classified information. He should have left the decision whether to prosecute Clinton up to the Justice Department. In his May 9, 2017, letter recommended that Comey should be fired, Deputy Attorney General wrote, “The director was wrong to usurp the Attorney General's authority on July 5, 2016, and announce his conclusion that the case should be closed without prosecution. It is not the function of the Director to make such an announcement. At most, the Director should have said the FBI had completed its investigation and presented its findings to federal prosecutors. The Director now defends his decision by asserting that he believed attorney General Loretta Lynch had a conflict. But the FBI Director is never empowered to supplant federal prosecutors and assume command of the Justice Department. There is a well-established process for other officials to step in when a conflict requires the recusal of the Attorney General. On July 5, however, the Director announced his own conclusions about the nation's most sensitive criminal investigation, without the authorization of duly appointed Justice Department leaders.”
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-39866767
2
Disingenuous, irrelevant talking points. What about Trump's dishonesty, amorality, and contempt for the rule of law, William?
3
The back and forth between these two men is counter productive and a giant waste of time. I will agree with Comey, that Trump lies about all things big and small and he is absolutely not morally fit to be president. He's a classless boor who can't seem to mind his manners, keep his emotions in check, tell the truth or respect anyone, including his wife and the office of president of the United States. He is an international embarrassment. Comey, for his part, ruined our chances of having the capable candidate win the election. I do believe he is an honest man but this unholy way between the two is useless. Come didn't really tell us anything we didn't already know about Trump.
1
For me it's as simple as this. Mr. Trump is a proven liar. Mr. Comey is not. Guess who we should believe?
5
Dear Mr. Comey
You have a marvelous command of the obvious. How about say Trump, in your opinion, DID obstruct justice! No “Possibly” ... you remove a stain with a strong cleaner.
What Comey said about Trump is 100% accurate. Trump is morally unfit to be President, and what does that say about the people who elected him President? I do not mind Comey getting a little personal with Trump, because we know this gets under Trump's thin skin more than anything else, and drives Trump crazy.
3
Virtually every Democrat is defending Comey. Back in October 2016, the Times reported that "Hillary Clinton and her allies sprang onto a war footing on Saturday, opening a ferocious attack on the F.B.I.’s director, James B. Comey."
Back then you couldn't find a Democrat who defended Comey. Now you can't find one against him. The only proper label for the Democrats' views is flagrant hypocrisy. They should be ashamed of taking the opposite side on Comey for partisan reasons. No one has principled positions any more.
It was a supremely ugly election campaign. Most of it wasn't even close to rational. As a Democrat and long-time Hillary supporter, I accept Comey's explanations and rationales for his choices. I don't even know he was wrong -- look at the decision matrix and tell me, what were the best choices to achieve his goals of protecting the FBI's reputation and Americans' trust in their elections? Maybe he misjudged, but it's not knowable now. I don't even know that anything he did or didn't do changed the outcome of the election. Maybe, but where's the research? Point me to the people who changed their vote or decided not to vote after the letter was released. I have come to believe that Comey, painfully straight, every bit the Boy Scout, has indeed tried to maintain principled positions and respect for the rule of law through this whole mess; maybe his thinking got muddled and he blew it but I simply do not believe he did anything partisan or underhanded. I also believe Trump is a dangerous unstable amoral ignorant fool who is destroying the shared foundations of this society, and anyone who can stand up to him and call him out on his malignancy deserves my support. It simply has nothing to do with Hillary or the election anymore. It wouldn't even be partisan if the Republicans hadn't so cravenly submitted to this evil man. And I do resent you calling it flagrant hypocrisy for us to change our judgments with more information and the passage of time. It's you who should be ashamed.
3
Comey's the guy who put Trump in office. Is this a case of buyers' remorse?
At the very least, James Comey is taking one for Team USA - standing up and saying what none of the kowtowing hypocrites in the Republican party probably think but will not say.
4
The 'slimeball' in this story is not Mr. Comey. He and the media, though, are largely responsible for the Trump election. They both thought Clinton would win and were tough on her during the campaign. They barely put a dent in the morally deficient Mr. Trump.
1
He should go to jail -Comey, not Trump ! FBI = Politics? I didn't know that.
1
No matter his flaws and mistakes, Comey is standing up to a bully. Yes, it's that simple. I applaud him and wish him luck.
7
The fact that Comey did not reveal the ongoing investigation into Trump's connections to Russia discredits his reasoning as to why he revealed the Clinton investigation, i.e., that she would be an "illegitimate" president if he had not revealed it.
When considering what we now know was a black opps group working to defeat Clinton among active and retired FBI agents, and that Giuliani revealed to the press that something was going to happen to change the election outcome two days before the letter was sent to Congress, I believe that Comey was an active participant in the black opps going on inside of the FBI.
I just hope that Comey hasn't damaged his value and credibility as a witness to Mueller's investigation and whatever cases may come out of it. He does not look as even-handed and dispassionate as he used to.
1
Comey is likely to be impeached (as a witness). Any mediocre lawyer could do it.
Does anyone have to be out of government to call the donald what he is ?
2
We all know what Trump is. I guess the question to consider, where do we go from here?
1
Rex Tillerson, General McMaster....all the others....they would say the very same things about Trump.
2
I am convinced that Trump is a greater threat to the entire World than he is to the United States. He antics with both allies and opponents create a fog of misunderstanding between the United States and other sovereign countries. Citizens of the United States can easily dismiss his lack of adherence to the truth but foreign nations must decide what they are required to do to insulate themselves against his lies and threats and invectives and insults and bullying and all the other nastiness he throws out. Roger M. Rodwin, Esq.
1
Not an assault on the president but a defense of the nation. Thanks Mr. Comey.
2
Trump brought this on himself the moment he fired Mr. Comey. Since Trump no longer acted like an honorable man much less a president. Trump’s conduct is undignified, shameful and embarrassing for USA.
If Trump isn't doing anything improper, why is he firing from left to right?
Why is he tweeting like a mad man about his personal issues?
Why is he not making any fair policies to serve the Americans?
Why is he not welcoming Syrian kids and other refugees in distress?
Why is he bombing Syria's chemical sites but validating otherwise the war created by Assad and Putin his ally?
2
The argument is certainly ugly, but a few points:
- It's refreshing to hear a Republican tell the unvarnished truth about Trump, after all the craven circumlocutions by Paul Ryan and company.
- Comey has made mistakes—some bad ones. But Trump has not even tried to do the right thing in any ethical terms, from refusing to unload his businesses to constant lying to cheating and fraud. It's no contest between the two.
- I am so sick of hearing Trump lie about and try to undercut decent people and vital organizations. Sick, sick, sick of it. Yes, in general I believe good people should stay out of the muck. But I can't help being glad that one person is giving it right back.
3
The Democratic Nation Committee pushed out Bernie Sanders, despite the fact that he was the stronger and more honest, (less baggage), candidate. I held my nose and voted for Hillary, but in comparison to either Trump or Bernie, she was stiff and not at ease. Comey's actions certainly did damage her campaign, and he will have to live with that. But I believe the extent of Russian interference has yet to be determined. A Federal law mandating paper ballots like those used in Los Angeles County, with "Ink-a-Vote" to eliminate "hanging chads", is necessary to ensure clean, re-countable votes with no electronic tampering. And the Electoral College needs to be a thing of history.
3
@Ionatrailer:
I agree with you on all counts.
What I see in Comey is a man whose highest value is doing the right thing. In Trump I see a man whose highest value is himself. Between the two, there is no contest as to which we should prefer. In the interview it was clear that Comey appreciates the hazard that his own view of what is right may be skewed. He says he surrounded himself with people who would poke that bubble of self-righteousness. Unfortunately, he apparently didn't seek the wise counsel of those people before he announced that Secretary Clinton had been extremely careless with classified information. I can't fault his decision to make the announcement himself. With the AG compromised and refusing to recuse herself, he had no choice. Where he went wrong was in going beyond the usual announcement that there was no evidence that a crime had been committed. For non-lawyers' benefit he could have said they had to be able to prove intentional misconduct or gross negligence and that using a private email server did not rise to the level of gross negligence. "Extremely careless" is a meaningless legal term although it sounds to a layperson like gross negligence. How could he think that wouldn't affect the election? How could he think it wouldn't look to many people like a cover-up? It certainly made him look bad with the legal community. That was more damaging to the FBI than any damage that could have been done by not announcing that another repository of emails had been found.
2
@Susan Piper:
An extremely well-written and cogent analysis; we need more contributors such as you.
Bravo!
Easy Monday, but got stuck at bottom right because of a couple mistakes. Fixed those tonfinish at an average Monday time for me.
It is far past high time for someone, ANYONE, to confront the public and the so-called "news media" with raw, unvarnished truth and characterization of the hopelessly insane Donald Trump who is an extreme threat to the entire world! Let's all give THREE LOUD RESOUNDING CHEERS for James Comey! Okay, so LET'S HEAR IT!
3
Trump is a self-centered man with little imagination, and his tweets are often just projections of his own behavior onto the people he's insulting or accusing, His tweets about Comey are no exception. "Slimeball." "Not smart." "Badly and out of whack." "His many lies." They're a mirror into the mind of the writer.
2
comey says the president shows no respect. where is comey's respect for the office of the president and a sitting president?
5
Are you fortunate enough to live in a democracy and requesting BLIND respect to a president who shows zero respect for truth and moral accountability? Why? Comey is owed respect for taking a risk and speaking out. Is that not exactly what the USA stands for? SO many are born into countries where they risk their lives to disagree with their leader. And you are asking to go in that direction. Again, why?
1
Trump is not our president. He is a clown greased into the Oval Office by methods not completely understood. Democracy had nothing to do with his "sitting".
2
Comey is cashing in and hopes to make a payload and become a darling of the left at the same time. But all this just proves that the FBI is so compromised, it is supposed to be non-partisan, and Americans of all political persuasions rely on the FBI as the nation's top law enforcement agency to carry out its duties without political bias.
Comey weaponized the FBI by using a FISA warrant to spy on American citizens associated with the Trump campaign and did not reveal to the FISA court that the Steele dossier, which was presented as the justification for the FISA warrant, was funded by both the Hillary campaign and the DNC, as opposition research against Trump. This was nothing more than a politically motivated warrant. Instead of spying on political opponents, Comey's FBI should have spent their efforts in protecting Americans (the FBI blundered on so many Jihadi terror attacks - Pulse nightclub massacre, San Bernadino, Fort Hood, Boston Marathon, etc.).
Tabloid journalism is unbecoming of a former and greatly compromised FBI chief.
2
Finally a Republican who is willing to tell the truth about Trump. It is a very brave thing to do, especially when Trump has an enormous bully pulpit on Twitter, an entire television network at his side and no scruples. Comey hasn't always made the best decisions, but I believe he is a man of integrity, unlike our current President.
2
Whatever Trump twits and how many times he does, it matters a little because even his hardcore supporters know he has problems with TRUTH. I am not a Comey fan and I believe that he did lot mistakes and error at least in judgment. But I trust him because he is not a liar. Comey is an honorable man and his honesty and integrity is never questionable.
1
I think Comey's elect Trump disaster is somewhat mitigated by blowing up the GOP Hillary-Investigation Industrial Complex (Chaffetz, Gowdy). Bringing down Ryan. If Hillary were president, these guys would be funded indefinitely, and w/o her, oxygen is cut off and they are done, nothing else to do.
1
Trump should have taken into account Comey's heritage. The Irish have been know to nurse grudges for 800 years. Trump has an enemy for lifetime.
2
At this point, I would rather have any used car salesman scooped off of any used car lot in the United States as President rather than Donald J. Trump. Used car salesmen are probably good people with a job known for chicanery, self serving deals, and lying. Trump is not a good person and has gotten through life with chicanery, self serving deals, lying, hush money, and thug lawyers. Unfortunately he is in a job where truthfulness, courage, and restraint are required. I have no confidence is his abilities to faithfully execute the office of the President of the United States. Too bad we don't have a no confidence vote. He should consider remaining "President" for the next four years and "governing" from Mar a Lago. General Kelly could take over as "Prime Minister". Trump could occasionally harass and bully via Twitter, call into Fox N' Friends, and, of course, play all the golf he wants.
1
I want to see Trump's tax returns. What is he hiding?
3
The unfolding dramatic irony of Making America Great Again has unleashed unimaginable consequences on this country.
5
Both Comey and Trump are imperfect, not unlike the rest of us.
However, people are generally not crooks and Comey is certainly not a crook. Can you say the same about Trump?
8
Fired employees often have an ax to grind. But Comey's wrath should be targeting Hillary Clinton. She put him and the FBI in a terrible position all because of her intentional disregard of the rules. She owes Comey the FBI and the country an apology. She did say she was sorry - as in sorry she was caught. But she never apologized. Don't hold your breath waiting for it either.
When her private server was discovered the DNC should have shown her the door that day. But things work out well. Rude and crude as Trump can be he is a million times better than Hillary. Trump should be on Mount Rushmore for saving the country from Hillary.
5
Really? I guess autocrats and hero worship, along with massive fraud ( trump university) along with treasonous behavior are good for the vitae of donald trump
I sure am not looking to work with this commentator Ouch!
Just more Big Lie propaganda that never stops. Comey was fired for being loyal to the rule of law and not to the lawless Trump, to be specific, for not killing the Russia investigation. That's what Trump said. Remember? The only axe Comey is grinding is to stand up for the values of law, truth, and morality, just as he says. Trump is a chaotic, destructive, sociopathic monster, a serial liar who is untethered to the truth, a man filled with contempt and aggression, who lacks any moral awareness and any capacity to care about anything or anyone other than himself. Comments about Hillary are completely beside the point, just more distractions from Trump's disastrous nature and actions.
2
That is a fresh air perspective and also exactly right!
1
For the life of me I cannot understand why some are criticizing Comey. Yes, this is a profoundly ugly fight, but these are the rules used by our president; this is the only way Trump knows how to fight or handle any dispute.
Comey has come public with his observations and experiences of Trump -- I wholeheartedly welcome it.
10
In trump world only trump can fight back. That’s the world of the bully. Anyone who dares to contravene fearless leader is somehow defective .
That is truly the saddest commentary on our state of affairs yet.
Demonstrates the need for a massive engagement with civics this country is lacking.
1
I have a few friends here in NYC who are/were in high-end commercial real estate. Over the years they also used the same comments about Trump calling him .... "morally unfit and a stain" on the commercial real estate business. Comey's comment does not surprise me.
5
It should be evident to anyone watching James Comey's behavior since the Clinton matter that he loves making moral pronouncements. He will find any excuse, avail himself of every opportunity, even going so far as to ignore long held Justice Department policies.
With respect to Trump, Comey happens to be right, the president is not fit to lead this nation, but as FBI Director, it was not Comey's job to make moral pronouncements. He just can't resist; it's like he's possessed by the demon Self-righteousness. He claims his compulsion is virtue, naturally, but it is actually yet another instance of ego run amuck.
Comey should be believed when he says that Trump requested loyalty from him and, in so doing, probably obstructed justice. His word alone is insufficient, given his tendency to find everyone else's moral failings. Rather, his view is strengthened by the fact that Trump exhibited this pattern of behavior with many others in his administration, Rogers, Pompeo -- he seemed to be quite desperately seeking interventionto stop the special counsel -- and so it is very likely he also sought help from the FBI Director.
But the President also has a point. Comey has committed crimes, crimes I can't yet reveal, but are certain to come out before long. Stay tuned. (Sound familiar, Director?)
Once again, we have the proverbial pot calling the kettle black.
So, the former chief domestic cop is now attacking in print the president of the U.S. and has admitted that, at least in part, his handling of an investigation into that president's chief political opponent may have been driven by the cop's dislike of that opponent and that opponent's lead in the polls last October. Is anyone besides me made extremely uncomfortable by this? As much as I hate Trump - and that hate broadens and deepens by the day - I really don't want to live in a country where the state's security forces openly interfere in domestic politics. So please people, don't look at Comey as some kind of hero. Look at him as another symptom of our quickening political malaise, yet another canary in the coal mine warning us about how close we are to losing our democracy. Then maybe some good can come from all this.
2
Btw Comey is a private citizen just like Hillary Clinton.
For all who fail to notice I am taking great pains to point our that private citizens get to talk their minds.
2
@Adam Stoler:
What does this have to do with what the impact of Comey's statements are on our nation's political life? I think you need to look up what a non-sequitur argument is before you post again.
1
Putting all else aside, I'm not sure I agree with Comey that Trump shouldn't be impeached but that, instead, we should vote him out in 2020. On the one hand, his approach would prolong the agony. On the other, we'd get Pence. So, it's a mixed bag.
1
If trump became president due to interference by the russians would that make him an illigitimate president and therefore rescind his presidency and redact everything and everyone he has nominated and voted on m.
2
I can't help but wonder: what if Trump hadn't fired Comey? What if he still was the director of the FBI? Would Comey have had the guts to broaden the investigation of Trump's campaign colluding with Russia to include Trump the man himself? I'm not so sure. Remember, Comey staunchly stated over and over that Trump was not the focus of the investigation. And he understood all to clearly that he "serves at the discretion of the President." I'm afraid that Comey would have willfully blinded himself to all of Trump's crimes and would not have strayed beyond the parameters of the investigation. He would have been weak and weird about it like he was with the Hillary stuff. He would've wrapped it up quickly and pinned it on Trump's people. Trump did us a favor by firing Comey.
One of the saddest things about this stand off, in my view, is what it reveals not just about our government now, but the unethical and even inhumane elements that have always existed. Few reporters other than Glenn Greenwald or Jeremy Scahill remind us that Mr. Comey signed off a Justice Department memo that legalized torture, by allowing all "interrogation tactics" short of those that would cause complete organ failure - in other words, do anything other than actually killing the guy. That's right. James Comey authorized torture - waterboarding, hanging men from the walls by their wrists, putting them in "coffins" for hours together, beating them, blaring loud music in their cells to deprive them of sleep. Never mind that these men had no counsel and no charges against them. The fact that he subsequently remade his image as some guardian of the Constitution is sickening. The fact that almost no one seems to be talking about it is worse. While Trump is an openly debased human being, I would argue that Comey is a privately debased one, who lost all moral highground when he legitmized the torture of human beings. The press may have successfully buried that, but I hope that history and whatever God exists will not.
1
Those who have criticized Comey for speaking out apparently wish him to remain properly silent, like 99% of everyone else who has some present or past position in government. Even those Democrats in Congress who have spoken out against Trump have done so in a muted, neutered way. Comey is the only person who is giving his all to stand up against Trump. The U.S., all American citizens (like myself), and actually much of the world are being held hostage to a president who, as Comey has aptly said, is incinerating America's institutions, norms and principles daily. What other person from high office is telling it like it is, as Comey is doing? I believe that the hue and cry criticizing Comey reveals a susceptibility in many people to the hate incitement being carried out against Comey by Trump and his crew. Trump is playing on people's capacity to resent Comey for his announcement of investigation against Hillary Clinton. Clinton supporters themselves are fanning the flames of this hate incitement, apparently unable to compute that the hate incitement Trump is waging against Comey is exactly what he waged against her. And ironically, while blaming Comey for her loss, they do not count the cost, and thus the damage to the US, of the hatred that Trump incited against Hillary. No one figures that into the equation, instead it appears that many are now gullibly echoing the Trumpian accusation that Comey "swayed the election". And of course, in both cases, Trumps wins.
1
"Mr. Comey’s interview and the publicity tour for his new book amount to a remarkable public assault on a sitting president."
Well, in my humble opinion Mr. Trump should be grateful that he's notassaulted with torches and pitchforks - or worse...
3
My my only comment is that perhaps Comey should have waited to publish his book after the Mueller investigation had released their report. Comey’s book launch/interviews are another distraction from the real issues facing us under this failed Administration. Comey as a witness in the investigation and the organized attacked on Comey could lessen his impact & credibilty on the stand.
1
Comey had a career of 30 years in public service until Trump abruptly and capriciously ended it, obstructing justice in the process. I don't begrudge him a cent of book royalties. Trump should pay them. Given the threat Trump poses to the country, it's Comey's duty to say his piece. Who else is doing it?
3
Comey had the guts to be honest. He wasn't "politically correct" or "professional" in the traditional sense of a man in his position. When he met with President Trump he did what we all do in assessing how a person comes across. To Comey, Trump came across: fake, contrived, insincere, and scary. After all Comey is a trained FBI agent- he observes. He went on to share his honestly about what he may have done with hindsight. Did he throw the election to Trump? Maybe. But one thing is for sure, he will go down in down in history as a hero, human and flawed as all humans are, who tried to save our fragile, young democracy and freedoms of our country.
3
Some of the comments are absolutely bizarre. There is this false equivalence claiming Comey has somehow "stooped to Trump's level." Comey kept his views to himself while he was FBI director and a public servant. But he is a private citizen now. Why shouldn't be able to call Trump for what he is? Why shouldn't Comey be able to defend himself and his colleagues? In a sane world, that Trump is a serial liar should be the least controversial thing to say, given how easily verifiably false Trump's statements are. One need go no farther than this publication to see dozens if not hundreds of fact-checks establishing Trump's statements as false. In fact, Trump's statements contradict each other so often some of them must be false simply by logic. But when Comey states the obvious, somehow he is "stooping to Trump's level." Meanwhile, people will talk about how Trump is "being Presidential" if he can speak two sentences without insulting somebody.
2
In the war of words and allegations between Mr. Comey and Mr. Trump, there exists a glaring differential between the statements made by each.
Mr. Comey's concerns regarding Mr. Trump's conduct are stated with specificity and Comey cites examples and particular instances to support his arguments that Mr. Trump's conduct poses dangers to US interests.
Mr. Trump, on the other hand, merely badmouths Mr. Comey with weak generalizations. It is as if Trump were a playground bully who has been caught out for egregious misbehavior by an authority figure, but seeks to minimize his own culpability by irrelevant distractions. Trump ignores that he himself is a bad actor by trying to cast aspersions on Comey's behavior; Trump doesn't, however, have any specifics to offer with respect to Mr. Comey. Trump resorts to his usual blather:"fake," "the worst...," "not smart" and so on. The ad hominem attacks are typical Trump - unsupported, sell-serving "Twit" attacks on a public servant who had the sheer nerve/gall to make well-considered, researched, documented comments regarding Trump's foibles.
Comey's world is more believable.
1
Mr. Comey did the right thing by writing this book. However, he should have omitted descriptions of Trump's appearance. They seem petty in contrast to the importance and value of Comey's analysis of Trump's (lack of) ethics and morals.
5
The thing that Comey said that I agree with the most is that the American people should vote against Trump and his supporters. This is far better than impeachment. This country is what its people make of it, we can not depend on politicians or any leaders, it is us not them who must do it.
5
The king-maker has not quite convinced me of his high moral standing. I still don't fully understand why it was morally necessary to announce an investigations into Clinton's emails without any prove of criminal activities just before the election.
"In the ABC interview, Mr. Comey said he believed at the time that it would be extremely damaging to the credibility of the F.B.I. if the reopened investigation did not come to light until after Mrs. Clinton had won the White House."
3
Comey is 100 percent right on the value of truth in leadership. But letting Trump off the hook by simply not reelecting him is not enough. Letting him get away with this just states that there are two justice systems, one of the rich, and one for the rest. Trump never had an honest day in his life, lying and deceit is at the core of his personality. This was not widely known prior to the election; in fact, it is not that common in the population, it is not easy to find somebody with this type of personality. He should be remembered for all times as the profoundly dishonest man who was removed from the Oval Office, not as Mr. Trump who did not get reelected.
8
If the president of the USA can use his position and photo ops at everything from natural disasters to debates to shill his hats, ties, and hotels, why wouldn't Comey take advantage of his 15 minutes on the national stage to sell a few books?
As much as I resent the individual players who thrust into this national "drama", I am livid with a congress that has done so little to reign in this sideshow. Congress needs to pass legislation to prevent dismissing Mueller without cause now to reassure citizens.
5
It would be an interesting exercise to calculate the value of all the “advertising” Trump, Sanders, and other rehearsed naysayers generate for Comey’s book.
What a delicious irony - Trump ends up promoting a book that casts him in the worst light and generates millions for Comey.
Maybe Comey’s next book should be The Real Art of the Deal!
3
Comey only needed to go by the book and he deviated not once but twice. First, by editorializing about Clinton's use of the email server even as he admitted there was no basis for further investigation, and second, by deciding to act in such a one sided way, in disclosing details about further questions related to email, while simultaneously keeping us all in the dark about the fact that Trump was also under investigation. It doesn't even matter whether those things changed the course of the election, because he did them, we are left to wonder whether our election was contaminated by the partisanship of law enforcement. Just one thing, and he failed, and like Humpty Dumpty's men he cannot go back and make it right, not now, not ever.
2
Had Comey decided not to disclose the reopening of the Clinton investigation, or to disclose the opening of the Trump-Russia one, you, or someone, would almost certainly be here now writing "because he did them, we are left to wonder whether our election was contaminated by the partisanship of law enforcement." That was a no-win situation, with no obviously "correct" choices. He was trying to navigate a political minefield and protect both the FBI's reputation and the American people's trust in their elections. I sincerely don't believe Comey had any other agenda. There is no way to know if Comey's choices affected the outcome of the election (think about that, please). In hindsight, every outcome in the decision matrix would have led to questions. And you can't know that Comey didn't make the better of two bad choices in each case here.
2
Obama has a similar book in him, but chose to remain dignified and silent in trust that the forces of truth and justice will prevail. I'm sure it hasn't been easy, knowing what he knows about Mr. Trump, but he feels obligated by his presidential role to remain a constant in this new world of Trump chaos. Comey has a right to defend himself publicly if he so chooses. Surely it is a must-read, though with some discretion.
3
I decided not to watch Comey's interview on ABC. It seemed to me, based on earlier interviews, that he is also a narcissist, albeit with a different temperament than the president, and not of the "malignant narcissist" variety. I am interested in what he has to say under oath, however.
1
Don't jump on the Comey band wagon because it is headed to disaster for both parties and our system of justice and law enforcement. As an independent, I have realized with utter dismay the partisanship that has infiltrated our justice system and our law enforcement, primarily the FBI. I am not bothered by the back and forth name calling, to me it is nonsense. What is alarming is the extent of political and partisan influence in our justice system. Comey has played politics as the director of the FBI and both parties have been used by Comey to promote himself and his job as the director of the FBI. I used to laugh when Hillary Clinton attributed her defeat to Comey's opening up the email investigation just a dozen days before the election. She was right, the opening of the investigation resulted in those undecided becoming doubters of whether Clinton can be trusted. Now Comey said that he reopened the investigation because most polls showed that she was winning. What should that reopening have to do with the time table for the investigation. Comey also faults Obama by suggesting that he “jeopardized” the Justice Department’s “credibility.” . So Comey is the bearer of bad news not just to the Democrats and the Republicans but our judicial system that seems to be "third world" during this 2016 election cycle. Partly because our judges are political appointees appointed either by the Democratic president or Republican president on the basis of the views they hold.
2
Come November 6th, it would be most wise for the American people to install a 2/3 majority in both houses of Congress to override any Trump revenge vetos. That Congress must make it highly improbable Trump can unilaterally launch nuclear weapons. It would be best if the Congressional majorities are a diverse coalition of truly patriotic politicos that are not seeking job security.
2
It's unfortunate that Comey tainted his story by including petty shots at Trump's appearance, and it's far more unfortunate that Comey waded into the political scene in the run-up to the election. But he's a long, long way from ever being considered the worst FBI director in history (remember Hoover?) and for Trump to smear him as "a leaker" is rich when Trump has just pardoned a really dangerous leaker, Scooter Libby. Whatever Comey leaked was not classified and was done as a whistleblower on the president as a threat to the Constitution and the country; what Libby leaked was classified, put the country at serious risk, and was completely motivated by partisan politics. Sure Libby was the fall guy for Cheney, but Libby certainly did not deserve a pardon.
3
Comey has certainly elicited impassioned reactions from readers. After listening to the interview, I understand him better, especially his reluctance to stand up to Trump who was totally ignorant of the duties and limits of the presidency. Comey describes Trump as "morally unfit" to be president, but does not advocate impeachment. We, the people, are stuck unless Robert Mueller and the Republicans decide that Trump has committed high crimes and misdemeanors. It was Republican senators who forced Nixon to resign in Watergate.
2
Mr. Comey's characterizations of president Trump might be right on the mark but Comey, in his excessively messianic persona, made crucial law enforcement decisions which should have purely objective, based on his perception of which way the election was headed in late October 2016. So, playing God, he decided to tilt it toward the vile figure he now claims to despise with such deep passion.
2
I haven't read Mr. Comey's book yet but I did watch the interview with Mr. Stephanopoulos last night, which was excellent.
I was not a big fan of either presidential candidate in 2016 but I did vote.
In my opinion, the interview last night did not serve Mr. Comey well. It brings into perspective that he was harshly critical of Ms. Clinton only a few days prior to the election, which certainly hurt her voting numbers.
At the same time, Mr. Comey had knowledge about Mr. Trump that would have also had a significant impact on the election results and he did nothing about it until after the election.
He comes across as somewhat haughty and arrogant. Yet, he plays the wounded warrior.
I, for one, am not buying it. Mr. Trump should be very thankful that he was spared Mr. Comey's testimony until well after the election.
I believe Mr. Comey tried to do the right thing but, really, it was very unfair to the American people and especially to Ms. Clinton.
3
The corruption of power takes many forms, from those with base designs to those with high ideals who believe they know better than all others.
All too human. Where is our modern day Shakepeare to chronicle this?
While I find the Comey book interesting, people should form their own opinions as to the character, morality, fitness, intellect, legislative ability, etc. of our current president. He is pretty much an open book so judge him by his own words and deeds.
1
I wonder what MacMaster's and Tillerson's books will reveal?
ABC blew a great opportunity last night with the Comey interview.
Here was a chance to have a real one on one in an important exchange about our country’s tenuous political situation under a mercurial and unstable president .
Instead of an uninterrupted and serious event we were given a Hollywood presentation complete with background music, video clips and commercials, as if this was just another reality show.
In between all the noise were clips of Comey being pushed to answer all of George Stephanopoulos’s commentary.
The gravitas of the situation was completely lost as was a great opportunity.
2
I was taught that a responsible public servant - even just a responsible manager or professional - tries to maintain an honest record of what they did, said, or reasoned in their work. It seems apparent Mr. Comey is following this widespread norm by making his detailed case to investigators and the public.
If the other guy's trying to make a case against self-serving "spin", improper bias, and failure to take responsibility for his own words and actions, I don't even know where to start.
Given the political makeup of the FBI, decidedly Trump, the real reason for Comey's pre election disclosure was to preempt internal threats by Trump partisan agents to expose the same on their own if he failed to do so.
It may have been noble for Comey to excuse his disclosure on the potential delegitimization of a Clinton presidency, but from here it all appears to have been an act of self defense against claims of bias and rigging.
Consider the potential that he had no choice.
1
I loathe Trump & want him removed, but nor do I trust Comey. Moreover, I don't know how anyone can watch his shifty, self-dramatizing performance & not conclude he has serious emotional issues.
When a truthful person answers questions, his eyes are steady, relaxed & focused; his answers have a directness & simplicity w/out layers of rehearsed self-justifictation, embellishment or elaboration. When Comey describes his actions, his eyes wander as if he is concentrating his attention on delivering a pre-prepared script, which is laden w/ arbitrary & highly subjective details that methodically frame his actions in the most justificatory (& lethal for opponent) light possible.
While that may be normal -to an extent- when trying to explain behavior after the fact, Mr. Comey gives the impression the events themselves unfolded w/ such justifications (sort of in a "plausible deniability" sense) being prepared. Like keeping his journal documenting how "concerned" he felt: in other words, he gives the impression of cannily, cunningly laying the groundwork for a big take-down all along, in part by tacitly encouraging candor on Trump's part, only to be secretly collecting ammunition.
Most of us have seen similar subtle aggression by emotionally disturbed people: they encourage you to be unguarded, just so they can pounce, always w/ perfect "plausible deniability", playing the innocent when they strike.
An un-shady official simply says: these were the facts & law, I did as required.
1
In fact, those emotional issues are hinted not only in his on-sleeve "working through things" a bit like a troubled housewife on the Oprah show, but comments like "gosh, did I need to hear that" when he got an affirming word from President Obama. I frankly never saw a government official -or just about any adult male- so casually project their touchy-feely emotionality and "vulnerability." Frankly, while I'm not particularly a fan of stereotypical lawyerly toughness, Comey's personality and demeanor seems to substitute for that something more on the feminine side, a kind of "cattiness." Perhaps "passive-aggressive whininess" captures it a bit. In any case, Mr. Comey just doesn't seem professional or truly lawyerly. As another commenter suggested: narcissistic and immature.
1
We have to be real here. Washington cannot be reformed without a disruption. And disruption cannot come from more of the same, isn’t it? (Give Trump a chance.)
Comey represents the status quo - that some useless and proclaimed decency that at its core levels is ALSO rooted in self interest.
I mean Comey is saying all these things in national or self-interest?
This guy is overrated. Let us all contribute to his pension fund.
1
I don't buy that Comey lost the election for Clinton. Clinton has yet to take responsibility for losing the election based on her own decisions, reputation, and image. People voted for Trump because they liked him. I figure that generally speaking every other person I meet voted for Trump, and that most of them would do so again tomorrow. I doubt that very few of them if any cared a whit what James Comey did before the election. They didn't need another reason not to vote for Clinton. They never liked her to begin with. Misogyny? No doubt, some of that too, but you can't blame that on Comey.
When Comey says that the American people have to take responsibility for voting Trump out, I agree with him, but worry that that will not happen. We don't seem to be as a country in much of a responsibility taking mood.
1
Is James Comey running interference for Robert Mueller by rushing out a book and promoting it? The president has been talking about firing Mueller for months, but he is astonishingly easy to distract, particularly when the topic is "Trump".
I suspect that James Comey and his book are the low hanging fruit, drawing attention away from the end stages of Mueller's investigation. The president is so far out of his league, that he doesn't even see what is coming.
1
Describing the conflict between James Comey and Pres. Trump as a "feud" makes a spectacle of what is a serious matter, a man unfit for high office holding the highest office in our country. There's true substance here, substance that the Times and other serious media report on daily but ignore to get our attention. You have our attention. Donald Trump as president is not entertainment. Treating Donald Trump's circus politics as serious high drama is what got him elected.
2
Mr. Comey's comment about impeachment makes a lot of sense. Impeachment could be chalked up by Trump to the "deep state" conspiring against him. America. coming to it's collective senses and turning the House and Senate bright, blue in 2018 will contain the beast to a point. Then him being ceremoniously voted out of office in 2020 by both the electoral college and popular vote will give Trump less to gripe about. Like Comey says it helps to prevent short circuiting our fragile system. In addition to voting sanity and the rule of law back in to power, good citizens need also to bring their collective voices loudly forward and condemn and hold accountable those who support Trump and his denizens. The Devin Nunezes, Trey Gowdys and Mitch McConnels need to be recognized for the traitors they are to the Constitution and be held personally and legally to task.
3
Just curious but has anyone actually read the book yet? Seems like there is a great deal of residual venting from ongoing political issues going on from both sides in the commentary here.
This person is guilty of this, that person is guilty of that... Really? It amazes me how many armchair law enforcement and judiciary there is.
We are all entitled to share our opinions but surely there is a responsibility to be informed, not simply through the amplified bubble that reinforces your own view but the positional it's of others, irrespective of how you personally feel.
Cast the first stone ladies & gentleman, before we forget that all these people, irrespective of their socio-economic status and privileges, are human beings too. They have the potential for good, bad and everything in between, as we all have.
Fundamentally, it our trust in the very institutions, the checks and balances of power and privilege, that needs to be questioned. Are they sufficient?
Focusing on the players, we forget to consider the game.
I can believe everything he said and says. I can also believe his integrity. However, I don't agree civil service brunch to be involved in election, any of it and intentionally or not. They just have to stay out, out, out, period!!! If they didn't, it is their fault and they corrupt democracy. Let's forget the likely scenarios and whichever way the election was influenced. This is surely a judgmental error Comey made and a loophole in the democracy system. The fact that he could make such mistakes should raise RED alarm. We cannot rely on the judgement of a FBI director, or any director for that matter, to defend democracy system!
Flynn was brought into the Trump camp specifically BECAUSE he was critical of a sitting president, so it is a little late for the WH to claim they have a problem with former intelligence officials criticizing a sitting president.
2
Props to Comey for having the spine to stand up to Trump so quickly and unabashedly. So many other leaders (especially conservatives) have been reluctant to criticize a Republican sitting President, but Trump's behavior over the past year absolutely demands it, and I'm glad someone stepped up to the plate. I don't think Comey will go down as the worst FBI Director...he will go down as a fearless leader who was not afraid to be controversial if he felt it was in the best interests of the country. That includes both his decision to go public with the reopening of the Hillary investigation right before the election (which I believed at the time and still believe was the right call, specifically for the reasons stated in this article), and his decision to unequivocally criticize Trump early in his administration.
4
Higher Loyalty? Comey politicized the FBI. His admission that he made judgments based on polling and assumptions of election results are only part of this. We also now know that another clique in the FBI wanted an insurance policy in case Trump did win. The loyalty I would like to see is in the FBI is to the rule of law. Comey's FBI was clearly busy with more than law enforcement. I wish I saw loyalty to that, rather than arrogance and ego.
2
" Do I look like a guy who needs hookers?" Well, didn't he spend $130,000 for a roll in the hay with a porn star?
15
I believe Comey.
18
Thank you, Mr. Comey for your honor, truth and courage in defending the rule of law. You were in a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" position with one public investigation (Clinton) and one non-public investigation (Russia) and you followed the rule of law. Period.
12
Comey stands tall and perpendicular.
The GOP has laid down their self respect at the feet of this immoral president.
17
Comey 2020?
4
Mandatory Spring Break reading, Madeline Albright’s: “Fascism/a Warning.” Wish she could run in 2020. Madame Former Secretary is a national treasure who, at age 80, knows from whence she speaks. See: Czechoslovakia 1939, et.al.
10
I think this is all about Comey interviewing for a slot on "The View" so he can Trash Trump every day and gt paid for it.
5
Is there anyone who will say that President Trump does not know how to call someone out as a liar when President Trump so believes?
So, Mr. Cohen publicly stated that President Trump did not know that he, Cohen, paid Stormy Daniels $130,000 on the eve of the election to silence her. This was 10 years after his marital indiscretion, and there are no allegations that Ms. Daniels was blackmailing him. Does anyone question that silencing Daniels on the eve of election helped his campaign? Which would play worse with the voters, Hillary Clinton having e-mails, or Donald Trump having sex with a porn star soon after the birth of his son?
President Trump has not called Mr. Cohen a liar. Remember that fact. Mr. Cohen did not inform the candidate that he made a $130,000 contribution to the campaign, as he is required to do by federal election law. Further Mr. Cohen, apparently falsely disclosed to Ms. Daniels that he represented the candidate when he bought her story to help the campaign. If President Trump sticks to his guns, that he did not know about the Stormy Daniels deal, Mr. Cohen is in a heap of legal trouble, and the Donald may now have earned the nickname, The Teflon Don.
4
If you wrestle with a pig, no one wins and you both end up covered in mud, or worse.
5
Be very concerned about Trump these days. Cornered rats are known to be quite dangerous.
15
I wonder, why does the Times publish Trumps childish, ignorant, name-calling twitter tirades? After the first 100, it becomes clear what this boy-man is made of. Why does anyone, who is aware what Trump is, work for him?
This article risks the false equivalency of publishing the knee-jerk man-child tweets of a presidential temper tantrum, in response to the thought out publication by Comey etal.
6
Donald J. Trump is morally unfit be outside the confines of a maximum security prison...lock him up!
13
James Comey didn't lose the election for Hillary Clinton; she ran a lousy campaign. She failed to treat black voters with any kind of respect, and she ignored President Obama's how-to-get-elected playbook. Another black person she disrespected and ignored.
4
James Comey for president.
5
It is 100% verifiably true that Trump is a liar. How is that news?
4
It's amazing that Trump dares to call comey a liar. When he lies every day numerous times. Chutzpah
9
Hmm. Who should I believe on questions of truthfulness and moral integrity: an Eagle Scout FBI agent, or a guy who has adulterous hook-ups with porn stars and lies with virtually every breath? Need to ponder that one.
14
The King is a fool.To believe, to follow will lead to sure heartbreak and anarchy.The Sheriff speaks earnestly and with wisdom. Judge as you must and be ready to assist this poor USA. We are being invaded internally by unscrupulous and dangerous loyalists.
7
Trump, You're fired!
--US citizens with a grain of sense
7
Trump's rambling tweets (CAPS, lower case, exclamation marks, ad hominum attacks, unsubstantiated allegations) bring me to mind of a cartoon character (Yosemite Sam? Daffy Duck?) being dragged off kicking and screaming because he's been outsmarted (by Bugs Bunny) yet again.
"NO!! NO!! I DIDN'T DO IT!! HE'S THE ONE YOU WANT!! I'VE BEEN FRAMED, I TELL YA!! HE DID IT!! DON'T YOU SEE???"
10
Comey says it would be better for the citizens to vote Trump out of office rather than for him to be impeached, but I'm not certain the country can survive four years of Trump. But if he only lasts until the next election and then, as a private citizen, is prosecuted for what seem to be his many crimes by the federal attorneys in NY, that works for me.
7
After four years of Trump judicial appointments, he will be the law in this sucker nation for decades.
1
Don't two liars cancel each other out?
I can't believe statements by either one but at least one is improving the economy while the other is.......corrupting law enforcement.
10
Improving the economy for people who are already rich while wrecking the environment, snatching away healthcare (where's the healthcare Trump promised?) and presiding over a decline in education, an increase in government by corporate interests and a ballooning deficit that, typical in Trump world, someone else will have to pay for.
Personally, I'm not interested in that kind of "improving economy."
Not sure why you are.
4
I can see why you think Trump is corrupting law enforcement but I’m not sure Comey has much to do with the economy.
What improvements are you talking about? Have you notice the price of gas? While Comey may not have the cleanest hands at least he can look in the mirror and still be at peace with himself. What can trump do besides lie?
In all of this, my concern is with the reputation and credibility of the FBI and the DOJ. I believe these are fine institutions whose actions keep criminals in line. With the exception of Hoover, maybe because of him, our national police force follows facts and laws.
Coney has his faults, but they pale next to Trump.
I think this Comey/Trump war of words will end favorably for the FBI and the DOJ. Starting with his early attack on the CIA - and then the FBI and DOJ, Trump made the wrong enemies.
Trump has average intelligence? Yeah, maybe if you compare him to a chimp. Sorry chimps, no offense.
24
James Comey is an incontrovertible liar trying to salvage his shattered reputation. He leaked confidential information, he lied under oath (i.e. perjury) to Congress. He was complicit in the Clinton-bought-and paid-for dossier, then lied to and misled the FISA court in obtaining an illegal warrant to spy on an opposing presidential candidate, then president elect. He completely bungled the Clinton email scandal, very likely intentionally for political reasons, allowing the destruction of evidence, and the passing out of immunity deals to those under suspicion for ZERO in return. He spent the better part of his leadership years covering up Clinton scandals. His is guilty of perjury, destruction of evidence, obstruction of justice, abuse of office, fraudulently misleading the FISA court, and really treason and sedition if you look at his actions regarding Trump, a constitutionally elected President, and that is just the short list. Summary: Comey was a dirty, politically motivated cop who was one of the worst FBI Directors in US history and deserved exactly what he got. If anyone was "morally unfit" for his position, it was clearly Comey.
11
It's probably good that Ripskull isn't your real name (it isn't, is it?) because absolutely every claim you make is false and defamatory, and provably so. You have mastered and integrated many of the Fox/Rush/Breitbart Big Lie talking points however, and it certainly sounds impressive. Aside from Comey, however, what do you think? Is Trump not a serial liar, untethered to truth?
24
I believe Comey. Trump's daily spewing of lies about virtually every possible topic reinforce my belief that Trump is lying about his intentions and interactions about Comey. The Mueller indictments, so far, coupled with the pleas of guilty fo Trump aides strengthen my belief that Trump is lying and Comey is telling the truth.
What disturbs me most about all this is Fox News' unbounded efforts to support Trump's efforts to evade any consequences for his lies, actions during the campaign and degradation of respect for the United States. Rupert Murdoch does not deserve the privilege of being granted licenses by the Federal Communications Commission to use the public airways for his media. Murdock and his lackeys are undermining the integrity of this Democracy by their lies and propaganda on behalf of the worst, most dangerous President in U.S. history.
31
Look, if our options are having to choose between the primary narcissism of Donald Trump (a narcissism of the ID, with its attendant psychic pitfall of paranoia--'Build the wall, build the wall, the Mexicans are about to overrun us!') or James Comey's alleged seconday narcissism (a narcissism of the superego, with its attendant psychic pitfall of messianism), I'm going with the latter, hands down, it's not even a no-brainer.
16
I firmly believe that none of this discourse will matter. What is going to really matter is how much of the heavily disputed Dossier can be corroborated with real evidence.
Obviously, we cannot get rid of tweets and publications made by Trump, Comey and the rest. However, whether Trump thinks Comey is a liar and slime ball will not matter, if Cohen secretly went to Prague or if Page or Kogan are the Russian professors, connections, energy experts or go-between for hacked emails that everyone has been meeting with. These revelations will blow this investigation into another dimension.
This debate will end the moment any of these things are verified, because the FBI will be full vindicated. Why? Because mouth pieces like Nunes and Fox News have repeatedly called it "unverified", false, and the proof of a deep state against Trump. Remember the crime was getting a FISA warrant based on an "unverified" Dossier funded by Clinton. BAM! All of the above are vindicated.
7
There is absolutely no substance, no facts to support Mr. Trump’s tweet attacks today that Comey and others committed crimes. His blast at the Federal
Bureau of Investigation and its members is being used to deflect attention from the Mueller investigation and finding the truth. The president is passing the buck with fabrication and lies. Talk about fake news he is a master at it!!
24
It's about time someone spoke the truth instead of the mealy-mouthed cowardice we have been seeing from both parties. The Republicans, however, have shown their true colors by supporting an obviousl fraud for "president."T their corruption will be rewarded with a sweep to the garbage heap.
There is absolutely no reason for any true American to support Trump in any way. To do so is to be as corrupt at he is.
22
Too bad Comey released his book now. It has made him so mad he might fire Mueller. Which is very bad for the country.
So if Mueller is fired, you are making the case that Comey is somehow responsible for the action and not the president? I think what is really harmful for our country is all of the entities and individuals that give Trump a free pass or "Mulligan" on his every stupid impulse decision or statement. If this book tips Trump over the edge, it is yet another thing, the strongest yet, that will again validate he lacks the grit, self assurance, and temperament for the top job.
We already have enough discontent about Trumps's presidency. I do not think Comey's book and interview adds much to it. Similar criticism have been made already by NYT readers in these columns.
1
Trump's existence in the White House amounts to a remarkable public assault on the presidency.
19
Comey's interview underscores conclusively the bias and hatred Trump faces every day from everyone in the Deep State and much of the media. In this case, the interviewer, posing as a news reporter, was Bill Clinton's former closest political assistant!
This is my prime takeaway: The disgraced former Director of the FBI obviously does not believe in "innocent until proven guilty." He condemns Trump even before the investigation of his close friend and mentor, Mueller, is concluded.
As for Comey's out-of-bounds, arrogant moral judgment--when you want a moral judgment talk to a priest, minister, rabbi or imam, not to a corrupt former law enforcement officer.
4
Comey was never disgraced. Trump disgraced himself by firing Comey for remaining loyal to the rule of law rather than switching his loyalty to Trump himself. (The pathetic term Deep State actually means anyone in government service who remains loyal to the rule of law rather than submitting to the whims and prejudices of the chief and his henchmen.) When Trump provokes hatred from those who have dealings with him, it is because his conduct is hateful, cruel, ignorant, and corrupt.
9
Why does anyone need a "deep state" to condemn Trump for his daily fabrications? He tweets lies constantly. He condemns himself through his own words and actions. It must take tremendous effort to not see or hear his constant lies.
1
Thank you Mr. Comey, even though you are not perfect (who is?) you have served your country and the FBI with honor and distinction. I will buy your book along with millions of others and will always hold you in high regard for pulling the covers off the most corrupt administration in US history. Trump and his cult are even worse than we know, but we will all find out in time!
16
In his statement regarding the recent attack on Syria, Our Fake So Called President said “the nations of the world can be judged by the friends they keep”. It is fair to say that that is also true for ex reality tv show stars. The likes of hate radio and conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones have been befriended and cultivated by this White House and that, is more than sufficient to tell us all that we need to know about the malevolent grifter that sits in the Oval Office.
9
Trump's tweets are spewed before 5 am. Why is he up so early? This is long before the airing of Fox and Friends where he gets his daily marching orders. Perhaps he doesn't sleep at all, and the white bags under his eyes reflect his makeup, not goggles from a tanning booth.
8
At 5 am in Washington, it is just 10pm in Moscow.
Mr. Comey told the truth. The President lied and still lies. Forget the politics, just get the proof, indict and lock him up. He is UNFIT to be President. Corruption, fraud, obstruction of justice, and so many lies, what else do we have to bring up to get rid of him? Could we please get this over with. If we have to wait for the next election(s), this country will be doomed. It is already on the road to perdition.
15
Please please please stop it again with the false equivalence! Yes, Mr Comey made mistakes and history will judge him for it, but the participants in this battle are not even remotely equal. One of them is the President of the United States of America, a person who until proven otherwise, is considered to be the leader of the free world and the other, to make this point alpine lake crystal clear, is a constituent, small c! Of the first guy. Period. Up until this moment in history while we may not have expected the guy we didn't vote for to represent all his constituents equally, he was supposed to behave, well, like he represented all his constituents. Until now. But as usual we keep letting the abnormality of the present moment change our behavior. Which really needs to stop. To sum up. Mr Comey gets to write his book whether we like it or not because, constituent, Democracy. POTUS is supposed to say unfair and get grayer.
1
Comey is an American lawyer and there should be little doubt that the President is telling the truth about him and most of what he has to say could apply to most lawyers in the USA. All branches of the U.S. government are run and dominated by lawyers and it is worth remembering the words of the late newspaper publisher Edward W. Scripps "The lawyers are known to be liars. They know they are known to be liars. They constantly practice falsehood and false pretense. From among these men we select our judges."
2
Unlike our more honorable real estate moguls with histories of cheating their suppliers....
Okay, so what about American businessmen? Or, what about American businessmen who write books about "the art of the deal" in which they promote lying as a strategy?
I stand 100 percent with Mr. Comey!
12
Comey's book and his TV tour are unfortunate. By commenting on ongoing investigations which he was a part of before being fired, he is soiling his reputation. That reputation was already a bit tainted by his pre-election announcement about HRC. The problem he has is that, if he were to wait to publish until all the investigations into Trump et al were to be over with, Comey's publisher would not have needed to print a million initial copies. In addition, by putting trivial stuff in about Trump's hand size and hair, he brings the narrative in a downward direction. With Trump, you should never stoop to conquer.
Trump's reaction to the Comey book is typically Trumpean. He never bothers to deny what was written or said about him or perhaps, at this stage, he doesn't want denials to bite him at a later date. He immediately sinks to an ad hominem attack on the speaker/writer. And, that attack, as it is here, is almost ironically hypocritical. Comey is a liar and a slimeball?!
Good thing for Trump his supporters never read the fact-checking websites nor watch any other television network besides FOX. Has any public figure in U.S. history lied more or been involved in more slimeball actions than Trump?
7
As Trump sits in the White House, it's fair to ask what accounts for the failure of officials and law enforcement in the states of New York and New Jersey to have prosecuted Trump long ago before he metastasized.
References to Trump a a "mob boss" by Comey my have have some basis in fact. To be sure, the Genovese and Gambino families were contracted to supply the concrete for Trump Tower through companies they controlled. This, and other connections with mob and grifters were brought courtesy of the disbarred and disgraced Roy Cohn.
The investigative reporting on Trump's early days is voluminous and damning and points to what amounts to either negligence or complicity by the cross political power brokers and government officials in the New York of that time.
New Jersey doesn't escape contempt when it fast tracked Trump's acquisition of the gambling licenses necessary to open his "failed" casinos neglecting to pick up on Trump's mob connections.
Comey deserves criticism for wrongfully insinuating himself into the politics of 2016 on two separate but critical junctures in the ill fated Clinton campaign. And I believe he has shown massive lack of judgement in once again inserting himself in yet another investigation by the FBI, private citizen or not.
But in weighing relativistic morality, Comey at best has breached protocol in his egoistic and self righteous show of self importance. On the other hand, Trump has brought his criminal enterprise into the Presidency.
7
Oh my, lordy. He who laughs last laughs loudest. Looks as though Comey, as compromised as he is by his eleventh hour email release, may still have the last laugh. The American people, lordy, they have not been served well by any of these "civil servants", have they? Yes, Mr. Tump, try on the title of "servant" because that is what you are. You serve at the will of the people whether you like it or not.
2
Mr Comey states that Trump doesn't represent American values and he should not be President because of his moral failings. Unfortunately, he does represent American values, only our worst values/traits which are our love of celebrity and money, our complacency and ignorance concerning politics and the rest of the world, and mainly, our racism and demonization of people who are not white Christians. Even though Trump is hiding his criminality, he is not hiding his character. Sixty-three million people voted for him because of the aforementioned values which is the truly frightening part of the Trump debacle.
13
Comey owns past election outcome. He tilted to Trump's favor. NJ and NY folks know all about Trump and his scandalous affairs. Being NJ native that Comey is, he can not claim he is ignorant of Trump's past and present.
I am not against Comey 's Clinton's email investigation but the timing of it and clearing Clinton of any wrong doing just 2 days prior to election day.
Now Comey can't claim to be virtuous.
Comey is responsible for Trump's victory.
1
I wouldn't exactly call Donald Trump a "sitting President." Most often he's standing while playing golf or reclining while watching TV half the day.
7
Morally unfit? Everyone has known this for years, and enough to elect him didn't and still don't care. All of this has made me more like him - with little basis for faith in others, I turn to myself.
6
I do not know Trump and I do not know Comey. How do I form my judgment on this issue? On the one hand is a man who has been a career civil servant since 1987. Through the checks and balances run by other American civil servants, he has put his intelligence, education, professionalism and yes, why not, ambition to the service of the public good. On the other hand, a man whose private career has only been being an aggressive-happy, egocentric and self-important boss in his own secretive personal business, on his own private mission to stamp out everybody who is not as aggressive-happy, egocentric and self-important as he himself. “Show me someone without an ego and I will show you a loser.” Seriously? Is this what America has come down to and what Americans want to hear from their president, making fun of American "losers,” whatever that means? He is not America’s role-model-in-chief, but its role-model-in-thief. I am astounded at how, with few days’ worth of grotesque pronouncements, he has been able to steal away decades of credibility earned by America on the world stage through the hard work of its citizens. Based on how verifiable Trumps’ and Comey’s statements and background are, I would waste-basket the whole Trump world in less than a nano-second (and this includes his unelected children and in-laws with no public-service background, tasked for no reason at all with policy-making responsibilities).
9
And the truth shall set you free or, make you very uncomfortable!
3
If given a choice, who would you rather have your children grow up to emulate, Comey or Trump?
Why?
We're eager to hear responses.
8
Trump likes to say that when someone hits him he hits back 100x harder. Sarah Huckabee said that again in her statements in the WH Press room on Friday. During the campaign he belittled, insulted and humiliated all sixteen opponents. And his base loved it. That is Trump. That is how he got elected. He has been a bully all his life. That is how he has bulldozed his way in business for fifty years. Anyone who has come close to him in business knows who he is. (And usually, one deal with him has been enough.)
It now appears that he has found someone willing to stand up to him, (or go into the mud with him) someone with no political debts or weakness, someone who was deeply involved in the facts, someone whose record stands by itself. And yes, someone who is really mad.
As both men get down into the mud, and the facts start leaking out, and our deranged president keeps going off the rails America will truly see what a sad place we are in. Trump's defenders will start backing off, little by little, quietly so as not to admit what fools they were to believe in him in the first place. At some point only Fox and the conspiracy whackos will be left defending him and this sad and sorry point in history.
Trump's mantra has been to "Make America Great Again". After witnessing the saga of the last twenty months, it would appear to any casual observer that to "Make America Great Again" is an excellent slogan for the Democratic Party to embrace in the coming elections.
12
Mad/angry or mad/crazy? Be careful with that word.
When and which Republican come forth and speak directly to Trump and say: "Mr President, have you no sense of dignity ."
7
Why is Trump responding at all? I thought presidents had more important things to do.
8
Is he a disgruntled showboat or a loyal American? He is a disgruntled showboat AND a loyal American. People are complicated. And this guy was fired over Twitter under very strange circumstances. I think when a person is mistreated such as this, they owe their story especially when this story speaks to a misuse of power by a amoral President.
10
Look under any other circumstances you could say Comey is trying to sell a book with a bunch of sensational accusations but we've all witnessed Trump's antics for the last two years to know Comey is telling the truth.
12
Hard to take Comey seriously if he thinks George Bush (if he's one of the other 2 presidents referred to as "the heart of ethical leadership") was less of a liar than Trump. Trump wears his petty lies openly and they, as far as I know, haven't gotten anyone killed. On the other hand Bush's lies sent the middle east into chaos and are responsible for the deaths and displacement of millions of people.
3
This is no longer about Trump.....with the passage of time, it is becoming more and more about the American people and what 'They' are going to do about him!
4
I hold the GOP for enabling Trump to be "Morally unfit". Remember to vote in November.
5
Today's verdict on Comey: Trump is over the 50% approval mark.
Next time you run Hillary to the presidency, you might want to not have her reat for two weeks after each campaign appearance.
2
It boggles the mind that anyone believes a single thing that Trump says. This wilful ignorance of the obvious is the biggest problem facing America today.
6
Imagine the slurs Trump would make if Comey were anything but white and male!
I couldn't be paid enough to lie on Trump's behalf, but look at those who do. And, for what?
He's coming apart at the seams with every tweet, and all the king's men can't put Humpty Trumpty back together again.
8
There is one thing Comey is wrong about.
Trump is not only "morally unfit" to be president, he's also mentally unfit to do so.
8
Who are these three “ethical” leaders Comey speaks of? Is he talking about our post 9-11 presidents? The war criminals who squandered trillions on unwinnable wars abroad while serving corporate criminals at home and enriching themselves while driving Americans into greater poverty and despair?
Thank you , James Comey. Americans ought consider the character and ethos of POTUS Trump - until he (and Republicans, Evangelical Christians, Alt-Right racists and hate mongers, and Capitalist class who abet in crimes and eschew accountability/fidelity to the Constitution) are removed from office. This will be the equivalent of another Civil War in the United States fought on political credos versus armed insurrection.
Trump is the least qualified person to hold the Presidency, and he represents the most reckless and dangerous threat to the Constitution. The power behind Trump comes from the four group I note above - each with their agenda to advance an America that will go way off the rails and quickly diminish our nation into a second rate status on the international stage.
What will be illuminated (my opinion) about Donald Trump - from raids in So. District of New York - is what James Comey asserts: Donald Trump is a mafia chieftain who demands absolute loyalty. Michael Cohen's services will be shown to tie together criminal wrong doing involving money laundry, tax evasion, steering US policy to Russian interests via payment, and a serial abuse or women who were paid off using illegal funds.
In Trump's orbits will be other criminals - many of immense wealth and industrial power - who have been perverted into allegiance to Trump's chaos in the hope of self-enrichment. The system will implode and it MUST - the nation must excise this cancer within our political body.
5
I believe Mr. Comey. I will support him by buying his book. Also, this terrible President must be defeated at theballot box
7
If you read Trump's ranting tweets yet fail to discern that this is a wildly erratic mental case, you suffer delusions, insufficient I.Q. or both.
22
Exactly. And the seriousness of that is why Comey is speaking out honestly. Can't understand those who think he should remain silent or refrain from speaking the unvarnished truth.
I don't understand why Comey didn't set Trump straight when he asked for loyalty. He had more than one opportunity to be forthright with Trump--the most inexperience, ethically challenged president to have ever been elected. It might have been the wake up call this president had never gotten from anyone else.
21
I agree that Comey should have been more forthright, and I think even Comey gets that, but would it have made a difference in Trump's behavior? Seems extremely unlikely to me. The man is an uncontrolled narcissist.
4
These days it's called a "me-too moment," when someone violates your expectations of how they should and will conduct themselves, by violating your own boundaries so extremely that cognitive dissonance leaves you confused and at a loss. This was the incoming POTUS, suddenly acting like a mob-boss defendant. It's not hard to see how it could have been hard for Comey to switch gears all of a sudden. It's regrettable Comey didn't think faster on his feet but it's not about Comey -- it's more evidence that Trump is a sociopath. Please don't blame the victim.
3
Likely because he was taken aback or perhaps suspected he would get fired if he didn't answer in the affirmative.
James Corey came across as a flawed man, evidenced by the rationale he gave for some of his decisions, but also as a truthful and deeply ethical man. One of his mistakes was believing that he was better qualified on essentially moral grounds to make certain decisions than the Justice Department personnel involved in the Clinton investigation, even though the A.G. had recused herself and assigned a subordinate to fulfill her role, and Comedy presented no grounds to believe that the subordinate was in any way compromised. Comey's unilateral decision to publically announce the termination of the investigation, along with gratuitous editorial comments, was improper, unwarranted, and betrays a certain hubris which deserves additional reflection on his part. His rational for announcing the reopening of the email investigation while staying silent on the Trump campaign/Russia has investigation was also misguided. Choosing a course that he felt was best for the FBI as an institution was a better motive than political loyalties or self interest, but still inappropriate when there were policies and procedures in place which did not support his actions. Fealty to the law, not loyalty to his Bureau, should have been his guiding light, and deviating from those policies was not his call to make. That said, we are all flawed humans, and Comey is far, far from the worst of us. Comparing his decisions with Trump's conduct is like comparing a speeding ticket to a racketeering conviction.
32
Well put, Sheilah.
3
My opinion is that the Bill Clinton/Lynch tarmac meeting was not a fortuitous event. It was planned so that Lynch would then recuse herself from having to make a decision about the Clinton gang's future. This way her exposure to the conspiracy is reduced significantly.
Anyway you slice it or dice it, it is all dirty.
I suspect the "hit back 100x harder" posture is the TV character, play acting to create a reality TV fracas to divert public attention from his real problem -- Cohen.
Michael Cohen will prove to be a truly bad lawyer, one who put his client in legal jeopardy rather than protecting him. Facing the gravity of his legal jeopardy, it's hard to imagine anyone caring at all about a name calling food fight. It's just the show.
22
No. The hit back 100x harder rule was learned early in Trump's adulthood at the feet of his mentor, the infamous and nefarious Roy Cohn. It has been a guiding principle for Trump in all his dealings, long before TV ever entered the picture. Trump's mania for retaliation builds on and crystallizes behavior patterns starting in early childhood, as reported over the years. Why do you think his father sent him to military school? Trump is a fragile, volatile, simmering mess of rage and insecurity -- the "winner," the "boss," the "billionaire" -- they're all pretenses, charades to try to fool everyone, himself included, into believing that he's not a weak, vulnerable, loser. Poor baby. Sad.
4
"And yet, he still managed to get 63 million Americans to vote for him."
I too was amazed that anyone voted for Trump after the "Access Hollwood" tape came out 3 weeks before the election, though I'd decided much earlier not to vote for him (or anyone else). I agree that reflects badly on the 63 million people who voted for him.
But it also reflects badly -- very badly -- on the only practical alternative: Hillary Clinton. Just how weak a candidate does one have to be in order to be unable to defeat someone like Donald Trump, especially after the "Access Hollwood" tape came out 3 weeks before the election?
24
A vast right-wing conspiracy and a clever Big Lie propaganda campaign conducted over decades can apparently persuade people to believe things that are so untrue as to be ridiculous. Hillary is not particularly charismatic but she is also not evil, unethical, or weak. What was done to her is, in a word, Orwellian.
5
You forgot that Mrs. Clinton got 3,000,000 more votes than did Mr. Trump.
3
Yes, that "weak" candidate won by 3+ million votes after:
7 Benghazi inquiries (still ongoing at election time, now suddenly ended)
Comey interfering with an email scandal that wasn't a scandal
A Wisconsin judge blocked recount after visible tampering with voting machines
Proven Russian interference via the hacking of the DNC
Russia bots + Facebook fake news
Assange-assisted Wikileaks interference
Bernie purity tests; split liberal votes due to Stein & Johnson
This blaming of Hillary has got to end. Nothing is worse than Trump, and that is a proven fact. We can't seriously think that we'd be having these same issues right now if Clinton were president. Pretending that voting for no one was the high ground didn't help in 2016 and it won't help in 2020.
2
We can disagree about Comey's judgement or wisdom and the debacle that was the 2016 election.
But:
None of the comments so far say that Comey lied or embellished the truth. He testified under oath. And in his book (going by the published excerpts) he comes across as a man who is self-aware (of his own limitations) and from the interview last night he showed that he was capable of introspection.
And let us also remember this: When Comey announce the re-opening of Mrs. Clinton's email investigation, then candidate Trump called Comey "a hero" among other things.
To date Mr. Trump has made 2000 misleading and false statement, and a host of outright lies.
I'll take ethical to a fault over no ethics at all, any day.
56
I think it takes a lot of courage for Comey to come out and say what he said about a sitting President of the US. I totally agree with him, and forgive him for his pettiness in the book. We all need to get to the polls and do something about it, before the Russians do something else to us!!
32
Mr. Comey is pointing out that the voters need to stand up and speak out. It is our responsibility to vote in the November midterms and in 2020. Impeachment is not a substitute for the electoral process.
33
When evaluating statements made by the President and Mr. Comey I consider the most important elements of making an argument as 1) Pound the Law 2) Pound the Facts or 3) Pound the Table. Trump does not pound the law because he does not know what law is, doesn't care and is a stand for anything but the rule of law. Trump cannot pound the facts, because he does not know the facts, can not make the distinction between fact vs. fiction, nor does he adhere to the truth. Finally, in the absence of the law and facts, Trump is left only to pound the table. SAD! Comey on the other hand knows the law, stands for facts and the truth and in this case, compared to Trump, lightly taps the table. Yes, Comey is a flawed human being, as are we all, and he has made some mistakes, some with great consequences. I trust in America and the American people to right this ship of state and to correct the error of this last election.
23
“The FBI’s job is to gather information for and make a recommendation to DOJ lawyers, not to hold press conferences and characterize the evidence. Tolerating that conduct from an FBI director sets a terrible precedent.” (Stephen Gillers in a Washington Post Interview before the election.) This is what still sticks in my craw, as they say. I'll have to read the book to make my own judgment, but he doesn't seem to understand the irony that in his own thinking, Hillary was going to win, and therefore they had to release a statement about emails they didn't even have in their possession. That was, in fact, a political calculation, as political as all the arm chair observers who were busily scouring every latest poll and looking to Nate Silver's crystal ball. And yet Comey says "If I ever (not 'we' by the way), start considering whose political fortunes will be affected..." Well he was considering whose political fortunes would be affected. He was thinking of HIllary's. And he was thinking about what Republicans in Congress would do and say when she was president. Anybody can and certainly will say many of the same things as he about corruption and lies of this so-called leader. Nobody believes Trump anymore so his tweets are more than a little ridiculous and Comey, on most matters, is utterly believable. But I will only accept Comey's redemption when he admits to overstepping the line of his duty with those press conferences about Hilary.
5
Hillary did win the popular vote, and she was not going to win the EC. Those dynamics were set far before Comey's gaff. Say what you will about Comey, but he did not throw the election.
2
He was thinking of protecting the good reputation of the FBI and Americans' trust in the fairness of our elections. It didn't work but if he'd played it the other way that wouldn't have worked either. The blame is entirely on the Republicans, not Comey.
1
I'm glad Comey wrote this book. It will become part of the record that historians and other analysts will rely upon to assess the quality and impact of this administration on history. Even if Trump does not live long enough to learn that his was the worst administration in the history of America at least his children and grandchildren ad infinitum will have to live with that assessment.
28
Comey's justification for releasing the "October surprise" that many believe destroyed Clinton's bid for the presidency is, to me, the only weak link in his right to the moral high ground when pitted against Trump.
But let's remember that there are other reasons Hillary lost: a perceived lack of charisma; complacency that led to lack of effort in states her campaign believed it had in the bag; Republicans so desperate to take the White House that they would back and vote for any candidate, regardless of his lack of character or qualifications; and gerrymandering. Comey's last-minute revelation was only the coup de grace.
I wept the night Clinton lost, only to watch my worst fears realized as the months have passed. What rekindles my hope is that most men and women in the justice department are as fiercely independent as Comey, and I believe they will see to it that the rule of law will prevail.
25
Jane - don't forget the 20+ years of non-stop assault on Hillary's character by Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, et al. It's weird...ask any American what it is that Hillary should be "locked up" for and they'll say "Well, she...humph humph...she....she..." She was investigated more than any person in history and the Republicans were never able to generate a charge, much less a conviction. Imagine! Twenty years of having the right-wing hate machine examining every move you make, and they STILL can't find anything. True.
3
It seems to me James Comey thought WAY too much during the 2016 election about the public and political response to the investigative work being done by the FBI, and consistently concluded it was his role to "be transparent" by holding press conferences and releasing statements. He should have just let the good work of the FBI stand on its own and, if said work was questioned in the future let it stand for itself and let the chips fall where they may. He crossed the line into politics, and instead he should have stayed where he belonged - in law enforcement. Obviously, his need to "be transparent" did not extend to the budding investigation of the Trump campaign (which he described as "too preliminary" to announce...a standard not applied to Weiner's laptop...) - which was a "one-two" punch (be "transparent" when it comes to Clinton, not when it comes to Trump), that gave us the disaster President we have today.
Now...with all that said - lots of mistakes made by Comey in my opinion - I think he is telling the truth about all his conversations with Trump.
12
I don't understand why the RNC is running attack ads and sponsoring websites to disparage Mr. Comey. The aggressive manner and tone of the attacks have a familiar Trumpian bent to them. Maybe the GOP thinks Mr. Comey wants to run for President in 2020. It seems more likely that national exposure is what Mr. Comey is seeking. Mr. Comey's motive for the book and tour is yet unclear (self-serving or best interests of the nation), but the result of the RNC's actions is that the GOP is doing most of the heavy publicity lifting for him. Doh!
11
Heavy lifting? Well, the GOP has been carrying trump around in victorious-shoulder-ride style for 10, er...over a year now, so the 'heavy lifting' has already been consistently applied to this ...I want to say...administration...? but I just can't
2
There's no reason, none at all, not to believe that Comey's motive is to stand up for the rule of law.
1
The ominous thing about this episode is that an unelected official of our government has such ability to affect the affairs of the nation, both before the election with his decision to reopen the email investigation on Mrs. Clinton, and now, by dispensing his unfettered opinions based on knowledge gained while he was an employee of the federal government. That is too much power for one person who has never directly faced a single voter. This problem and how to reform it should be an issue faced by both Congress and the Executive Branch (once we have a more serious President) in the future. We have ignored it for far too long.
5
"an unelected official of our government has such (too much) ability to affect the affairs of our nation" This happens every day. Scott Pruitt is an unelected official with too much power. Steven Miller, ditto. The latest Economic council Director-a Fox News commentator with a shockingly wrong track record. Betsy Devos!! Need I go on?
3
Most of us still believe in the First Amendment. And most of us believe Comey.
3
Comey has the right, and I'd argue the responsibility, to tell his story, especially considering the grave danger this ignorant child president poses.
2
Now we have confirmation trump is not fit for office. The question is when are the republicans going to do something about it?
17
Comey has provided data points to flesh out a scenario; the executive branch has tossed out rebuttals in an attempt to construct an alternate narrative. The rebuttals, rather than clarify, beg for some believable framework. What narrative can one construct around dismissing someone's second in command and an AG for a one-on-one conversation? It doesn't matter to me if the president has small hands or wears expensive suits with ties that are too long; it does matter to me that he meets every unflattering bit of information about himself with the rejoinder, "fake news."
Comey has provided us a credible explanation of events and his mindset. We are all individuals and as such will not come to the same conclusions or make the same decisions as he did. We can believe he came to some 'wrong' or even 'dangerous' decisions, but the same can be said of each of us. The decision we made, within the framework of our election procedure, is one he believes we are duty-bound to live with for the moment...and the correction is to move forward at the next election opportunity, not look to undo through impeachment.
5
Who do I believe? Comey certainly has far more credibility than Trump. But he's no knight and his armor is tarnished - tarnished by his choice to conceal the Russian meddling on behalf of the Trump campaign from the voters while choosing to trot out a baseless allegation of Clinton's email investigation. It was a perfect storm of factors for bad voting, and he was one of the major factors. I'm not suggesting that the FBI should conceal evidence of crime; rather, I'm wondering why he did.
5
He can criticize Trump all he wants but is still responsible for throwing the election to him. Nothing he has to say about Trump's deficiencies were not self-evident long before the election.
9
Comey is a fact witness in the Mueller inquiry -- last night, and through his book, he pretty much disqualified himself as a disinterested witness with all of his speculation about "possible" crimes and bad acts and "moral" judgments, and thereby undermines the very inquiry that he set in motion by his leaked memos.
2
You are correct. Comey could be impeached (as a witness) before Dondi is impeached as a president. I like that idea.
Although I respect Mr. Comey for being on the anti-Trump bandwagon, in my opinion his input is ill-advised and was not needed at this time. He appears to me to be a self-righteous person who, as FBI Director and as a former FBI Director, to have spoken out too many times when he ought to have kept things to himself. In particular, I believe he never should have spoken about an investigation of Hillary's emails prior to the election, and moreover, to have done so without mentioning the investigation of Russian interference in the campaign. His unwarranted speeches against FBI policy before the election gave the election to Trump.
7
Comey admits that he made the pre-election announcement about the re-opening of the Clinton investigation because he thought Clinton was in no danger of losing the election -- a political decision. Comey also admits that had he he known his announcement would have put Trump in office he would not have made the announcement -- another political decision. This is not he role of the Director of the F.B.I., to decide who is to become President, despite what J. Edgar Hoover might have thought.
6
His role was not as the director of the FBI for if it was he would have recommended multiple counts of multiple criminal offenses for the Clinton gang. What it was, was part of a conspiracy to exonerate Hillary Clinton - we are only finding about this now because Hillary lost. If she won the election, most, if not all, of this
questionable conduct would never come to light.
Just look at the history of the two men involved.
Comey is a career law enforcement official who has been part of the republican and democratic administrations.
In the time since 9/11/01 he has played some part in the security of this nation and keeping us safe without much fanfare.
Until recently he was not well know outside of Washington or federal law enforcement.
Then there is DJT.
A convicted liar with decades of scandal, mismanagement and incompetence.
We have known what kind of a leader DJT is for many years and he was (s)elected in spite of all the negative history.
The point is these two do not change 180 degrees since November 2016.
Comey did not suddenly decide to go rogue and target DJT in some effort to de legitimize DJT and his administration
DJT did not suddenly find truth and integrity.
Comey, like him or not, is a law enforcement official telling his side of the story based on meritorious federal service over decades.
DJT is reverting to what he does best- lying and disparaging any one that threatens him regardless of who it is.
My money is on Comey! And the district attorneys office in Manhattan.
37
Everyone seems to think that Comey's announcement altered the course of the election. Yet I do not see one poll that backs up this assertion. To me, then, this is convenient thinking. What altered the course of this election was the suicidal commitment of the Democrats to a terrible candidate. Her narcissism was so extreme that she decided she needed a personal email server. She carpetbagged her way to a safe seat in New York a place she never had any relation to. If Dems want to learn from this election, don't look at Comey, look at Hillary.
13
The Five Thirty Eight website gave Trump a 1 to 5 shot at winning on Oct. 28. When the election was held, Five Thirty Eight. gave Trump a 1 in 3 shot at winning.
5
I don't think you know the meaning of the word "narcissism."
The polls don't prove anything about the email announcement.
2
Post hoc ergo propter hoc fallacy, Doc. There's no specific evidence the polls tightened BECAUSE Chaffetz leaked Comey's letter. There's no real evidence that Trump wouldn't have won but for the letter.
I don't accept Ross's characterization of Clinton however. I think Hillary was a fine candidate and I enthusiastically supported her from her first run for the Senate from my state. I blame the Republicans for her malicious vilification over many years. Yes, she apparently made misjudgments over the years, including the email server and in running her campaign, but nothing that disqualified her from office. That was just relentless spin from the Gingrich playbook. I blame him and the rest of the Republicans for the evil politics that have culminated in Trump.
1
Most adults understand that it is reasonable to dislike yet believe Comey along with the F.B.I., while at the same time detesting and distrusting Trump together with his gang of Russian-Republicans.
Like many or most prosecutors I have encountered over the past too many years, Comey is self-righteous, judgmental, sanctimonious, ambitious, and moderately sadistic, but Comey is far, far more credible than Trump or just about any other living Republican politician.
22
The value of interest in Comey’s attacks on Trump is only in whether the Congress gets around to removing this President from office. We need action not just verbal jousting. Mueller’s investigation into Trump remains the only route to ridding us of the cancer of Trump.
10
When has Trump ever, ever told the truth? Possibly , only when it could further his purpose. He could gain from it. The former FBI Director saying it out loud or that he is lacking in the morals department is not "new " news. Not new news to all of us who have had to live with the results of this corrupt form of government. From the do nothing, yet obstructionist Republican Party in backing him, to the degradation of the view of us from around the world. Yes we know he is a liar, yes we know he has no morals, who has to hear it are his own party. We Know! We have been banging at the doors of the GOP , and nobody is there. And not one of them admits this . So, do we really believe once all is said and done they will do the moral thing and impeach him?
11
I agree with Comey that truth and integrity are values that all US leaders should exhibit, and that Trump falls far short on both.
But what surprised me a bit in Comey's interview (a full transcript is available on the ABC website) was that he seemed to have figured all this out fairly recently. Not to knock his sincerity -- which, apparently, was real -- but it occurred to me, as a reader, that he'd stumbled upon these realizations -- that "truth" and "integrity" matter -- fairly late in the game. True enough, Trump still hasn't stumbled on them, but Comey stumbled on them a lot later than most of us did.
3
MyThreeCents: I think Comey was brought up in a home where truth and integrity mattered. trump on the other hand was TAUGHT, in his home, by an unscrupulous father that what was good was scamming people, being a con artist, womanizing, lying. These kinds of qualities are either genetic, or environmental...or both. Comey discussed, last night, if you remember, how as a young boy, he had an experience with a break-in, in his family home, that made him very sensitive to the victims of crime. I am not sure that I understand WHY you think that Comey "stumbled upon the realization that truth and integrity matter--fairly late in the game." There was no indication of that when he was being interviewed last night, in fact, it was clear that just the opposite was true. That this was a person who was raised in a home where good values were taught.
2
@Elin Minkoff: The Trump family history of crime, misogyny, racism, and draft dodging goes further back than Fred Trump (who was also arrested at a 1926 Ku Klux Klan event and pursued by the Justice Dept for violation of civil rights laws when he systematically rejected housing applications from black people). Fred's father emigrated from Germany to Alaska, where he ran a brothel. After profiting from prostitution, he returned to Germany to marry, only to be deported by the German government for refusing to do his military service. Like grandfather, like son, like grandson. The Trump defects run in the family.
1
James B. Comey is a true American patriot and he should be a US President, to replace the low-class individual who happens to occupy the White House at this moment.
10
Thank you, Mr. Comey, for saying it out loud.
21
What a complete and utter mess. As the saying goes Mr. Comey, in for a dime, in for a dollar. Why simply stop at "everyone who worked for him"?
The only thing I would change in James Comey's assessment of Donald Trump is that the president is not only "a stain on everyone who worked for him" but a PERMANENT stain and disgrace on the presidency, the White House, the United States, and every American citizen.
20
The problem is not that Donald is morally unfit. The problem is that the Republicans think that he is morally fit.
17
You've identified both problems quite accurately.
1
I would suggest that the Republicans well know that DJT is morally unfit but don’t care. Having one of their own as POTUS makes all else acceptable.
2
I believe James Comey is an honorable man. His biggest mistake and one we as fellow citizens all must share, is to underestimate the apathy, brainwashing, prejudice and unfortunate lack of judgment and intelligence of the American electorate. We all need to share the blame as well as the shame of this corrupt regime. I can forgive those who were duped into voting for him. What I cannot and will not forgive, are those who still support and enable him.
13
Comey stated emphatically to Congress and America the Clinton email investigation (despite 30,000 carefully deleted missing emails) was closed and did not constitute a crime.
Then Weiner's laptop inadvertently pops up containing the missing emails a device that Huma should have turned over to the FBI when all her electronic devices were subpoenaed.
Comey was right to announce the investigation was reopened since he announced it was closed. That he considered polling data in his timing and wording demonstrates he clearly is just another DC politician, not the "just the facts" lawman of his dreams.
Two deeply flawed candidates, both with some troubling ethical history, were running for president. One of them had to win. A Clinton administration would contain just as many scandals, just fewer tweets about them.
3
No, poor analysis. Comey didn't announce the investigation was reopened. Rep. Chaffetz LEAKED Comey's letter advising his committee of that. Comey considered polling data since he was anxious not to do something that would influence the outcome of the election, or that would open the FBI to accusations it had done so. If he had withheld the information that the investigation had been reopened until after the election and Clinton had won, as everyone expected, those accusations would indeed have been made, by the Republicans. Comey did his best to play it straight, and, as a Hillary supporter from 2000 on, I see no reason to think he didn't do just that. There's no actual evidence or logical basis to conclude that Comey's letter changed the election resuts, just highly emotionally-based suspicion that it must have.
As to the 30,000 emails, you might want to review the evidence for who deleted them, how that came to happen, and what Clinton's role was (hint: she ordered them deleted long before the subpoena and had no idea they hadn't already been deleted until after someone else finally got around to it, after the subpoena). As to the emails that were found on Weiner's laptop? Comey found nothing and re-closed the investigation. Despite decades of partisan investigations Hillary still has a fine ethical record. Trump is a well-known swindler, liar, and bully, with a well-earned reputation as an ethics-free operator. Equating the two is distorted to the point of dishonesty.
2
I don't care if Comey is not perfect. No one is. He is speaking truth about Trump and I am waiting to hear Hilary Clinton join in.
8
The spineless Republicans in Congress are the people we need to hear from.
2
With our "President" glued to the TV and his Twitter account obsessively countering Comey's criticisms and all the sordid revelations about porn-star payoffs etc. etc., it's a good thing the country doesn't have any real problems he should be dealing with. Like crumbling infrastructure, declining white working class life expectancy, police-involved shootings, gun violence, stagnant wages, unaffordable health care, humanitarian crises, climate change ... I guess those will have to wait until we elect a president whose opinion of himself is not so easily threatened by unflattering commentary.
8
Whatever else that might be said about these two men, their personal animus for each other is beyond question.
Given Mueller's discovery of the FBI manifesting Comey's point of view--disdain and contempt for Trump, and by necessary connection those who voted for him--our FBI is quite the political swamp, it seems, of bias and deceit.
Comey has revealed more about the institution in his attacks on Trump than he ever intended.
Seems that "Lynch hill" he didn't want "to die on" over "the matter" will someday be his epitaph.
3
Way overstated. Some few FBI agents expressed disdain and contempt for Trump, not "the FBI." Trump has provoked disdain and contempt from most of the people who have had dealings with him over the past 40+ years, including those in law enforcement, so that proves nothing. And there's no reason law enforcement officials can't conduct themselves with professionalism despite feeling disdain and contempt. After all, most of the criminals that they deal with on a daily basis inevitably provoke such feelings. Wake up -- Trump's one of the bad guys, that's why those who feel that way feel that way.
1
Of course, you're talking about both McCabe and Comey, right? Nonetheless, if what you say is true, why no "disdain and contempt" for Hillary--far more egregious assaults on our nation as Obama's Secretary of State, no less. Question remains: Can the FBI be trusted for fairness regardless--Comey's recent statements suggest not.
To have a president fighting the DOJ and the FBI is beyond comprehension. And to have a bunch of weak Republican politicians enabling him is disgusting. I hope this is the ebb of how low this country has gone and after 2018 and 2020 elections, this country can provide better leadership and have a better future. If we continue on this path, the United States is no longer the leader of the free world.
9
James Comey is a flawed paragon of virtue. He can never shake off the irresponsibility of his conduct with regards to the email controversy on Hillary. He changed the course of elections resulting in a demi-god as President and the immeasurable damage to the country. All his regrets cannot erase that fact. But he has been an effective FBI Chief loyal to his country, efficient with integrity, decent, morally upright, unafraid to stand up to the powers that be. He was fired for these same strengths by a dishonest, morally bankrupt President trying to obstruct justice. But now Comey, unshackled from protocol, unencumbered is is in a position to reveal all criminal activity of this President. He can and looks like he will.He is a determined man to seek some redemption for his lapse of judgement. As for all the epithets coming his way will not be stopped.
5
Funny thing is, an FBI agent that I know very well, told me that 95% of the agents are Republicans and voted for Trump. I bet they wish they could take back their votes!
6
I don’t personally know Trump or James Comey, but from what I have seen and heard over the last couple of years, but I can form a realistic opinion about both men from what I do know about each. Trump has proven again and again that he is a consistent liar, he twists the words of others, and has no moral guidance whatsoever. Those who may deny this fact are either the worst judges of character to ever walk the earth or are just the same kind of people so they see that as normal. We all know that nobody is perfect. I’m sure that Mr. Comey has made many mistakes in his lifetime, as we all have, but from all accounts seems to be a decent human being that cared about his job and his family. So the accounts he wrote of in his book in relation to Trump, and the things he has said and done, I would wholeheartedly believe. I could see absolutely no reason for Mr. Comey to lie or embellish the truth. Trump has proven that he has no honor, no morality, no caring of the American people other than does that he can gain from, and no ability to lead a country. I can only hope and pray that he is removed from office before the damage he is doing becomes irreversible.
8
I wish we could have seen the whole 5 HOURS of the Interview.
4
The last few years have really been so low rent that it's hard to remember what this country seemed to be like when I think back. Our political system rebounding back and forth from one dismal outcome after another is very disheartening. All these people who seem to have so much potential to right the ship turnout to be incapable, untrained, unwilling, unable to move us in one direction. They get drowned in the morass of Washington's swamp.
Yet the clown show rolls on. No real consensus of governing for all of the people, mostly special interests clawing and screaming for their desired outcome.
This latest episode - more low rent.
1
Curiously I hear more people talking like President Trump when I see people in pubs, shopping centers and in streets than people talking like Mr. Comey.
3
While Comey struggled to do the right thing, Trump had no problem doing the wrong thing(s). I trust the former.
18
Comey has admitted to engaging in political calculus before making his horrible decision on the Clinton email investigation days before the election (and, let us remember, while keeping interestingly quiet about the Trump investigation). This is, I believe, a scandal. It is amazing to me that this is not receiving more attention.
4
No scandal. Comey was trying to protect the FBI from accusations it was trying to affect the outcome of the election, he wasn't actually trying to affect the outcome of the election. No one expected Trump to win, not even Trump. As he said, Comey kept quiet about the Trump-Russia investigation because it had just begun and he couldn't both announce it and pursue it -- obviously.
1
Remember the good old days, when someone was either a "good guy" or a "bad guy?" Sometimes a person would change from one to the other -- either temporarily (Sean Spicer, for example) or permanently (Comey, for example) but, at any given moment, one was either a "good guy" or a "bad guy."
Looks like those good old days are over.
Now, it appears, we're drawing finer distinctions -- no longer just "good guy" versus "bad guy." Trump, for example, is (and always was and will be) a "bad guy," but now we know that he's a "really bad guy." Similarly, Comey is no longer a "good guy" -- he did cost Hillary Clinton the election, after all -- but he's nowhere near as bad as Trump; in other words, he's "bad," but not "really, really bad."
Clear? If you have trouble figuring out these new shades of gray, you will be well-advised to read Charles Blow's column, entitled "Dislike Comey, Despise Trump." It explains all the new rules.
2
@MyThreeCents: Yours is a simplistic analysis, and you know it. I'm surprised that you bothered to post it, because your comments are generally more thoughtful, even though I frequently disagree with them.
No one - not even Donald Trump or Adolf Hitler - is entirely a "bad guy." And no one - not James Comey, not Ghandi, not Martin Luther King, Jr. - is entirely a "good guy."
The good guy/bad guy dichotomy is a convenient device for storytellers of all kinds, but it does not, and never will, reflect reality.
We are all flawed, complex beings; some of our actions are good, some are bad, some are ambiguous. We are all capable of doing evil, just as we are all capable of doing good. Our choices and decisions are not always rational, nor are they always impulsive.
Generalizations have their place, but they are frequently not accurate and there will nearly always be exceptions to every rule. Part of becoming an adult involves coming to these realizations, and learning how to cope with them. The inability to learn this important life lesson is why the rabid right and the rabid left continue to villify each other, sowing discord as they go.
Comey may be imperfect.
But he is now the only game in town. the only voice taking on this monster of a President at full speed, giving voice to the loathing that so many of us feel for the repulsive man who has created a certified living nightmare.
So, I'm with Jim, flaws and all.
Comey is saying what desperately has to be said. And for that, we owe him, however strange he might feel to us as a bedfellow.
14
Mr. Comey characterizes Mr. Trump well, just as I see Mr. Trump.
Trump thought he could denigrate Comey without compunction, but now Comey is standing up to him, so naturally Trump is unhappy.
Good.
12
It IS likely the so-called president will have to leave office. I'll always miss his grace under fire, his majestic defense of the Constitution and his unshakable sense of right and wrong. American will have to search hard to find a replacement who lives up to him
Oh well,......
1
This charge that Comey changed the election in its final days is a stretch. He certainly didn't change my vote. The NYT, or any reputable entity, should do a proper survey.
4
It's astounding to me to hear people say that Comey has descended to Trump's level. The difference between Trump and Comey is night and day.
With the exception of a handful of minor passages -- physical descriptions of Trump and the swipe at Trump's marriage because of his defensiveness re the dossier -- Comey beams honor, integrity, truthfulness, forthrightness, dedication, competence, maturity, and a lot of other things at the opposite pole from Trump. (And even those few personal jabs by Comey are forgivable given the viciousness, venom and threats of Trump's and his surrogates' highly personal attacks.)
Comey's mafia comparisons and 'morally unfit' statements struck me not as ad hominem insults, but rather as an honest -- and accurate -- assessment of Trump and his inner circle, real dangers Comey is right to warn us about.
Too, for someone who has occupied very powerful positions, Comey also shows a human side, including humility, and a willingness to acknowledge his mistakes, something you rarely see from someone at his level.
In all, I can't see what more you can expect.
11
One of the material talking points is whether Comey should have revealed that the Clinton email investigation was being reopened because they found emails on the PC Weiner had in his possession. “He did not want to taint a Clinton victory”. Ok fine.
The investigation could have been reopened and closed in a day. They should have a staff of 25,50 or 100 to do this a day. It should not have been closed so close to election (a day or two before?). If this had been something so critical in the corporate world it would have been closed in 24 hours. Period.
3
Maybe, maybe not:
"Our country was safer because of him."
I don't doubt that Comey did his best in all of his jobs, but none of us can say that someone else would not have done better. Had Comey not been appointed to head the FBI, someone else would have been. Maybe he or she would have done a worse job than Comey did; maybe the other way around. Bottom line: We just don't know (and never will) whether "our country was safer" because of Comey. Maybe it was; maybe it wasn't.
The things that Mr. Comey says about Trump are probably true - and then some. However, Comey makes a poor messenger. He helped put Trump in power with his misguided statements about Clinton 10 days before the election, and now he attacks the man he assisted. Unlike his stance on Russia, who also assisted him, Trump had no further use for Comey, so he fired him. Russia, on the other hand, will help him in his bid for a second term, so he goes easy on Russia. Now Comey is useless to both Trump and the FBI, as his book and rants do nothing but damage the honorable bureau he once served. The back-and-forth mudslinging with Trump is an ill wind that blows no man good.
1
If I were James Comey I would offer to take a lie detector test and challenge Donald Trump to do the same. Questions would - for both - include statements made by Trump to Comey in one-on-one situations.
Four outcomes possible:
1. Both found to be telling the truth
2. Both found to be lying
3. Trump found to be telling the truth, Comey found to be lying
4. Comey found to be telling the truth, Trump found to be lying.
Outcomes 1 and 2 are inconclusive, 3 and 4 point to a conclusion.
Again, if I were Comey, I'd make the offer and then take the test (Spoiler alert - I believe Comey is telling the truth) whether or not Trump agrees to do the same.
3
A sociopath like Mr. Trump feels no guilt or compunction about lying, so no lie detector test is likely to pick up his lies.
Seems to me that Mr. Comey, both in his position as FBI drector and now, has a problem of speaking at the wrong time to the wrong people. His revelation of the Clinton emails investigation while not revealing those concerning Trump at that time was, to say the least, unprofessional in his capacity as FBI director and possibly derailed the election. His publication of a book and interview, both of which have a tell-all feeling, tarnishes his credibility as a witness in further investigations.
Granted he was shocked at the crude way in which he was dismissed, but as a high ranking law enforcement officer and legal expert it seems to me he should have done a better job at keeping his mouth shut until the right moment. As it is, his interview and book deal may enrich him financially but at the same time I believe will diminish respect for him and his previous office.
1
As our children continued to harm or kill themselves because they were bullied in school, our country has worked diligently against bullying in schools. We might have even believed that the anti-bullying campaigns were working.
And suddenly, one man managed to legitimize bullying on a national scale that we haven't heard before and 50% of the nation joined in, victimizing those with less.
And suddenly, one man with a demonstrated lifetime of respectable service, regardless of his politics, is drawn down into the mud to face evil on its own terms, to spit back refusing to be intimidated. And this is our hero?!?
The 1st Amendment was not written to protect the vile, it was written to protect those who spoke against a vile government. There is a difference.
We are at a crossroad. We need to demand civil argument, fortified with reason and logic, not rhetoric and lies.
7
I agree with Mr. Comey that Mr. Trump is neither crazy nor mentally defective but is MORALLY unfit to be President. Mr. Comey's position as FBI director both before and after the 2016 election placed him in extraordinary difficulty. He tried to do the right thing even though it violated FBI guidelines. In retrospect he would have been better off following FBI guidelines to the letter, but he was trying to do the best that he could for America.
9
You can’t unscramble eggs Mr. Comey. The only way for our nation to move past 2016, is for republican voters to finally admit the slow motion disaster which is Donald J Trump and move on.
7
The morality of someone who puts partisan politics above doing his duty as a government agent of law enforcement, specifically when it came to him to decide whether to fully investigate HRC regarding her illicit use of a personal unsecure private email server, is simply atrocious. Comey should have resigned when Lynch and Obama nudged nudged winked winked and telegraphed that he was not to perform his sworn obligation to indict HRC.
Anyone ever wonder where the "Russians" might have gotten access to the DNC emails? Anyone think to check whether the flout-all-the-rules Secretary of State used the same password for her illicit email server as she did for her account at the DNC, or at the State Dept.? Comey SHOULD have checked that. Except he was playing partisan politics, hoping against hope that HRC would somehow win and he would keep his job.
1
Trump should never have run for President, and from the tenor of his tweets, he knows its. He never had and never will have the qualifications. His motives were base, and all we see is his baseness infecting in the Office and the country. Someone should draw up the Presidential job description, sign it into law, and have candidates apply so there are no mistakes like this in the future. It would have knocked a character like Trump out of the running before he came down the elevator. You could put at the top of the list: An Honorable Man. Comey, to his credit is in a position to point out Trump's dishonor where no one else seems to be as effectual. Once again, we are having the important national conversation; This Presidency is a mistake. I'm grateful for it. I, too, refuse to give up on our country. Keep speaking out, Mr. Comey. I just ordered your book.
6
Just for one minute let’s put aside the damage Trump has done to our country, courtesy of Comeys' decisions. Was Trump justified in firing Comey? FBI Director Comey couldn’t tell the President that he was on the threshold of obstructing justice? Comey tells the entire world that he is re-opening the Clinton email investigation two weeks before the election but doesn’t mention a Trump/Russian investigation? He says that after meeting the President – elect for the first time at Trump Tower he felt as though he was at a “mob” sit down but then subjects himself to ridicule by having dinner at the White House alone with said “mob” President? He states that Trump should NOT be impeached. We deserve to live with “our” decision until the next presidential election?
As a retired law enforcement supervisor if I made the decisions or comments Comey made I probably would’ve been fired also…
With all the hang wringing about whether Comey's statements about HRC's email server just before the election did or didn't throw the election to Trump we are forgetting about Russia and Cambridge Analytica and targeted election propaganda and the distinct possibility that the voting machines were hacked. It is not one specific issue that got us all into this mess. But here we are - snapping at each other rather than the common enemy. The question is how do we learn from all the snafus and find the way back to democracy. I know I'm a Canadian but America - you are so entwined in world affairs that your problems become everyone's problems.
4
Before he was installed, We were all warned about this con artist.
"Unfit and Dangerous" were at the forefront of the descriptions.
Even a sitting Supreme court Justice sounded the alarm of warning.
Trump lost the vote "Of The People" by nearly 3,000,000 ballots.
A single file line of Three Million people would stretch for almost two thousand miles, given 3.5 feet for each person, including a little space before and after each person.
5
Thank you, Mr. Comey. Well worth the wait. In fact, one might learn a lesson about waiting before one speaks, or tweets, from your measured, thoughtful and candid responses. Sometimes you have to meet the enemy on his own ground, but it doesn't mean you have to stoop to his level. You didn't. And clearing one's name is an honorable motivation for attempting to explain things that actually can be explained. We know a bit more about the "why" regarding Clinton's emails, but you may have to be patient with our forgiveness on that one.
11
A fired employee going postal on the boss who fired him - we have seen this movie before.
If Comey was as uncomfortable as he said he was around Trump or to be in the administration of someone "morally unfit", why did he not resign as opposed to hang around till fired?
Very boring interview. The only bombshell was when he admitted to writing a report exonerating Hillary long before the investigation had concluded.
He should know that if you get in a mud fight with a pig, you are as dirtied as the pig itself. Sad human being.
13
Not boring. Riveting.
You're right about seeing this before...it was Nixon. But that's about all you're right about.
3
Fired for being loyal to rule of law and to the FBI as an institution, rather than to Trump personally. Comey's firing by Trump is a badge of honor. Trump is indeed morally unfit, as well as psychologically unfit since he is so preoccupied with thinking about himself he has no time or concern for anyone or anything else. How do you respond to that? Comey is courageous, candid, and dignified in reporting his experiences with and judgments about Trump. Trump has always made clear his first priority is retaliation -- yup, accusing Comey of going postal is, yet again, projection, as is the epithet "sad." Wake up. Trump's a pathetic loser pretending to be a winner.
1
The president, whoever holds that position, is not the FBI Director's boss, and the director is not an employee of a president. The FBI Director works for the citizenry/government of the USA. The FBI director, whoever it is, takes an oath to protect and defend the USA against all enemies, foreign and domestic. He/she doesn't take an oath to do the bidding of a sitting president.
A little birdy told me that Trump is so furious he might actually READ the book! Not really. Can you imagine? Wouldn't it be fun to work at Fox & Friends? You could get the idiot to repeat all kinds of crazy stuff! Oh, that's right, he already does.
27
Comey really didn't tell us anything any sane, moral, reasonably intelligent person didn't know about trump from this campaign. People that voted for him anyway were compromised in one or more of these areas. We knew his treatment of women. We new he had a history of making wild promises that he had no intention of keeping. We knew that he routinely cheated and defrauded people. We knew that he was egomaniacal. We knew that no US bank trusted him with a loan. We knew he was a liar.
40
I’m shocked that Comey is taking so much incoming fire. He’s a private citizen. He wrote a book with insight on Trump that seems to jive with all that we’ve heard before. I applaud him for telling what sounds like the truth. Is he really a Boy Scout? No. But let’s heed his warning.
38
James Comey calls President Trump "morally unfit" and a "stain" on all around him. Talk about calling the kettle black. Who is the morally unfit and a stain on our country? I'll give you a little hint. His initials are J.C. and he was a former director of the FBI. Funny isn't it. President Trump still has his job and will continue to serve our country as he was elected to do.
6
I assume from what you wrote that you must believe that anyone charged by the FBI during Comeys-and McAcbes-tenure must immediately be released and all charges dropped. You cant say the men who ran the FBI were crooked liars when it came to Trump, but are telling the truth about everyone else they brought up on charges. Is that what you are advocating, and if not why aren't you calling for this? If the heads of the department are so corrupt, then any and all actions taken by that agency must also be assumed to be corrupt and dishonest.
Please detail the ways in which Comey is morally unfit, and which cases out of his long career with which you have a beef.
On the other hand, our President grabs women by their private parts, cheats on his pregnant wife with a pornstar, won't reveal his taxes to make transparent any conflict of interest, calls those who question him infantile names, funnels more wealth to his cronies, and is daily undermining the rule of law, government, and environmental and health and safety regulations.
Best of all, the POTUS is doing all this right in your face and telling you it's for your own good. And you love it.
2
If anything, Trump cavorting with prostitutes seems like the the most normal and sane thing a man like Trump could do, and this is what Comey fears the Russians may have on him? Oh, and right after personally calling him a stain who treats women like meat? I believe the common reaction today to such idiotic statements is LOL? The more Comey talks the more it looks like Trump was right in firing him.
5
Declaring that 'cavorting with prostitutes' as a sane thing for a married man to do -- remember, Trump claimed that no one 'cherishes' women like he does -- is abdicating a moral center.
Given what we have seen thus far from Trumpworld's business dealings -- do you honestly believe that prostitutes are the only thing that the Russians may have? You're not worried about financial conflicts of interest, or money-laundering?
So strange. When someone simply speaks the undeniable truth about Trump they are accused of stooping to Trump's level. When they don't, they are accused of cowardice. The Emperor is naked.
46
II think it’s possible to speak the undeniable truth about Trump (he demands unquestioning loyalty, he lies, he attempts to intimidate others, has no intellectual curiosity) without stooping to his level ( size of hands, style of dress, hair, skin tone).
Stooping to Trump's level would involve making scurrilous, disgusting, mocking, sarcastic, and/or unfounded accusations. That's not what Comey does. He is a law enforcement officer, trained to notice and record details. His comments may present an unpleasant picture of Trump but they are objective, neutral, and, yes, informative. Nor are they uniformly unflattering -- did you hear Comey report his impression of Trump's mental status in the interview broadcast last night? Sorry, this is more false equivalence.
1
why do people insist on blaming comey, when it was chaffetz who went public with the news about the fbi reopening the case, in a TWEET?
comey duly reported what was happening, to the appropriate congressional committees. CHAFFETZ LEAKED IT.
https://www.snopes.com/news/2016/10/28/fbi-reopening-clinton-e-mail-inve...
15
Comey, McCabe, Rosenstein, Mueller as all Republicans.
Pity poor victim, Trump.
12
My lack of trust in Hillary had nothing to do with Comey. My assessment of her character came about through her unethical and illegal fund raising for the Clinton Foundation not to mention her buying the Democratic Party nomination while throwing Bernie Sanders under the bus.
Comey is a man of truth. I cannot say that about the man in the White House pretending to be President of United States,
10
bernie was not -- and still isn't -- a Democrat, so why should the Democratic Party side with him over a bona fide Democrat?
5
Truth you say; he wrongfully gave the Clinton gang a pass on multiple counts of criminal activity.
Don should have fired Comey on day 2 of his presidency for wrongfully exonerating
the Clinton gang.
Simple Norma. Bernard was seeking the Dem. nomination. Did you forget about that fact.
nothing unexpected including ABC avoiding questions related to Comey lying to congress and especially the allegations made by McCabe that Comey is a liar
my view is that Trump is more an exaggerator and not a serial liar the media is trying to project
4
The truth. A tax cut to corporations, a budget that's completely unsustainable, Federal Judgeships being given to unqualified ideologues, John Bolton running NSA, healthcare cut back for the most vulnerable, trade wars that impact the livelihood of 100's of millions, payoffs to porn stars and playmates, pristine lands sold off to outdated carbon energy producers, family members and friends who have received payoffs from Russian oligarchs getting top secret security clearance.
James Comey's poor judgement as the head of the FBI was instrumental in helping get a man who may well have committed treason the Presidency of the USA. He deserved to get fired. He has empowered the Trump administration to defame and destroy the independent credibility of our Justice system. Putin in his wildest dreams couldn't have predicted that a few bots and hacks could bring the US to it's knees. Without the rule of law which is dependent on the credibility of our justice system the USA is literally going to go down the drain.
11
Trump the toddler responds as always, with cowardly tweets that project his failings onto others. Trump knows that he isn't smart, is slippery, belongs in jail and will end up badly. Too bad he doesn't possess any self-reflective ability.
16
What astonishes me most about much of the latest American discourse about Comey is the notion that he “swung the election” with his Hillary email revelation. What?!? Do you not think for yourselves? Do you not listen to a higher instinct than just the latest news story or senate hearing? Do you not research your candidates, your future leaders, by assessing their past on your own, keenly observing their consistency of word and deed, evaluating their moral choices over the long term, reflecting on what you see in their eyes, paying close attention to what you feel in your heart? Or do you let your mind be made up by spin and political PR and tie length and pantsuit fit and carefully turned press releases? Lordy, what a media-addicted, unthinking way to exist. Listen within, people. Shut out the clamor and listen within.
23
Please don't judge all Americans as being the same.
Some of us actually read several journalistic publications, look at candidate records, etc.
And then there are those that get their news from a twitter feed or facebook.
Is it any wonder we are in the predicament we are in?
Exactly.
This is the Jerry Springer presidency. This presidency is just a mirror image of what a large part of this country really is, just a bunch of crass, unsophisticated, rude, ignorant, low lives. Just like the folks you see on the Jerry Springer Show.
36
Some contest! A “self-admitted leaker” vs. the self-admitted sexual predator. Leaking has its goods and bads: Ellsberg vs Snowden / Assange. There is nothing good about sexual predation.
9
Amazing how the folks commenting here all seem to believe that Comey is nothing but a saint due to his LONG public service career.
Folks will believe what they wish and hear only what they want to hear, that's life!
As more details come to light , we'll see how much of a saint Comey was. Just because someone served in the military, worked for the government, did community service in the slums, doesn't make them a saint.
One just has to look back just a few weeks and see all the praise and hand wringing over the firing of McCabe. He spent years of dedicated service for the country, bla bla bla. The the DoJ internal investigation comes out and we find out just how much of a sleeze he was.
Comey sounds like a very disgruntled fired employee. He even admitted to congress that he leaked some documents to his friend to disclose to , of all folks, the N Y T. But to some folks here, that's OK.
Time will tell, I doubt we'll see the truth written here at the Times.
5
Tautology: "circular reasoning."
So, you are dismissing Comey because somehow, he must have some skeletons in his closer that would undermine a distinguished career in law enforcement?
And by comparison, the POTUS has a long distinguished career of service to the law and public service that makes his name-calling of Comey the equivalent of a reasoned critique or understanding of how government works, right?
Ha ha, good luck with that!
4
Can Do.
Bravo to Comey. He is standing up to the despicable tyrant. Where are the other voices?
23
While this is a rather unseemly affair it is refreshing to see the karma of it. Funny how the bully is so cowardly when he gets beat up.
7
Trump is not just morally unfit to be President of the United States of America; he's also unfit in every other way. He should never have been elected, of course, and will go down as the most disastrous occupant of the Oval Office once he is removed from office, which can't come too soon, by those Americans with a brain in their heads.
21
"....the family, the family, the family, the family."
Evict the family from the White House and install a legitimate president who reflects American values.
That means rejecting the entire Republican party, which is self evidently a criminal organization.
19
Comey has it exactly backwards.
It was Obama's elitist leftism and hatred of America that left a deep stain on the White House.
It will take President Trump his entire first term to undo the Obama/Comey damage.
4
Oh, yes, Obama's elitism. Let's see, got Osama bin Laden. Check. Saved the U.S. and the world from the economic brink. Check. Provided 24 million with health care. Check. Added to the budget for infrastructure. Check. Proposed universal higher education for all. Check. A path to remaining in the U.S. for the Dreamers. Check. Acted with dignity and class. Check.
Now Trump. Tax cut for the wealthy. Check. Anti-immigration policy. Check. No support for the Dreamers. Check. State, education and EPA departments gutted. Check. Tacit support for white supremacists. Check. Acts with the lowest of moral and ethical standards. Check.
I'm sorry, who's elitist? And who has hatred? -- thegamesmenplay.com
1
It is a bitter irony that in the Vietnam war we had on one hand Mueller commanding a platoon of Company H, 2nd Battalion (“The Magnificent Bastards”), 4th Marines and its mission “to close with and destroy the enemy by fire and maneuver, or repel the enemy’s assault by fire and close combat”. He was awarded the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry.On the other hand trump at the same time was immersing himself in the Manhattan party scene and cynically boasting that “fighting venereal disease was his Vietnam” A disgusting war coward, he evaded sacrifice not once but five times in the Vietnam war ... a draft dodger par excellence while over 50,000 americans died as he carried on his self-serving hedonistic life style with absolutely no regrets or second thoughts.
34
It occurs to me that being called a "slime ball" by Trump is the equivalent of highest praise from just about anyone else. You have to consider the source! Who would want to be complimented by Trump? Ugh... that would just mean that you were as bad as he is!
Methinks that Trump doth protest too much on Twitter. Get him to a federal prison!
18
Thanks for sharing, Mr. Comey. Mr. Tillerson, Mr. Priebus, Mr. McMaster, do you gentlemen have anything to add?
14
It is just mind-boggling how so many Americans would believe a lifelong serial liar over an honorable, dedicated civil servant - or that they simply don't care. Trump claims that the serach warrants conducted on his consigliere... I mean personal lawyer... are "an attack on 'you' and America," but he's wrong; his own ugly, personal attacks on anything and everyone are destroying the very fabric of American society.
15
In her statement that she released yesterday Lauretta Lynch agrees with Trump that Comey is a liar. My takeaway is that there are several possibilities: either Lynch is lying or Comey is lying, or both are lying. But somebody must be lying here. Maybe a new special counsel can help us solve this problem. Our future may depend on this solution.
3
As a native New Yorker who grew up with Trump as a Presence, I can tell you he was always tabloid fodder and the joke of all jokes. He was not admirable, he was not noble, his opinions seemed extreme and off the mark... yet the media was (and is) constantly delighted to give him A Voice. He had a permanent place in rags like The New York Post. His sexploits with Marla Maples, his appearances at celebrity scenes, his divorces, his bankruptcies—as well as his crackpot opinions on political matters of all stripes.
Now along comes Comey to speak his mind, and I truly hope that people don't resent him for dong so. He's getting fifteen minutes of fame, compared with Trump's 50-something years as a media feeder. Comey has every right to describe what he's experienced.
12
Meanwhile, important leadership positions in the State Department remain empty; Scott Pruitt openly undermines the EPA; Betsy Devos works to promote the privatization of public schools and student loans; the "smartest" advisors are either fired or flee on their own; Congress passes a massive tax bill that drives up the national deficit, gives a huge tax break to millionaires, and provides not a penny for infrastructure. The Republicans are getting exactly what they've long desired. To use the talking point that my local Congressman just sent me to promote his bid for 2018: "I will continue working toward getting the government off the backs of the American people."
Wrecking government by shifting the tax burden (and there will be one!) away from the rich, undermining environmental protections, getting rid of unions, public schools, and consumer protection--while cutting social security and medicare: this is the opposite of good government. It is the definition of short-sighted, greedy, ideological, and ultimately self-defeating political stupidity.
11
Trump always shoots the messenger, never the message. That tells me that the messages are accurate. The fact that he really ripped into Comey with words that should never emanate from the White House tells me that Comey's statements are very accurate indeed.
Trump may be acting like a cornered rat. But, like all mobsters, he is skilled at hiding his crimes. So he will be hard to get rid of.
12
God, make it stop. Somebody make it *stop*.
This is so deeply embarrassing for our country. I can't even believe it's happening. Trump is deranged.
14
This gentleman was Director of the FBI for God's sake!
His whole life was investigating the highest level of crimes against our nation.
Why would anyone think Comey should just fade away and say nothing about how this sick President is trampling on our revered institutions and constantly smearing the most honorable of honorable men and women in our country.
Trump is a national disgrace and FINALLY someone with a spine is standing up to this pitiful excuse for a human being, shouting Wake up America!!
16
I despise 45. But as FBI Director, couldn’t Comey just have utilized all of his vast department resources, completed his investigation(s) and quietly turned over any/all findings and recommendations to the DOJ, like, I dunno, an experienced professional? Was he required to leak “nothing stories” to the press and hold news conferences? On the eve of a major national election. I didn’t think so. Another D.C. grandstander with little, if any, understanding of his job description. He single-handily affected the election more than 10,000 Russian trolls. Please, St. James he is not. More like Mayberry’s Goober. And 45 is Earnest T. Bass. They both hurt us badly. And continue to do so.
This 71 year old can be duly ponderous and fairly slow on the uptake.
Once again we are reminded that we have a tragically unprepared and dangerously unprincipled ‘fake’ president who is an unabashed leech and an unrepentant liar.
10
Just imagine all the criminals who should be set free according to Comey because they didn't intend to do it. We can nickname it the Hillary standard of justice.
3
Trump is a bombastic liar who is emminently unfit for the office of president. Fortunately for him, his followers don't care and the GOP is unwilling to take a patriotic stand by calling him out for his aberrant behavior.
You would think at some point labeling everyone who criticizes him a liar and a [choose a fifth grader's offensive nickname] would fail him, but it continues to work for him with his anemic apologists and followers.
8
eminently, sorry 'bout that!
Moderate Democrat here. After watching the interview, I have come to a few conclusions:
1. Comey seems like anything but "a liar" He comes across as honest to a fault. Too Honest!
2. He has high moral fiber unlike our fake president
3. He did what he thought was right at the time. If Clinton had won, he would have been skewed, accused of bias and the FBI would be labeled by Trumps liars. Oh wait that happened anyway even though it all benefited Trump.
4. It amazes me how Trump, despite his reputation as a compulsive liar, despite his entire entourage including personal lawyer being in legal jeopardy on the highest levels could think anyone would find him morally superior to Comey. Laughable whether you like Comey or not. Trump's twitter attacks are pathetic. It makes him look like a crazy unethical person. When I hear Comey talk, I hear a sane rational coherent person.
5. Comey has all of the attributes that would make a good president. Thank you for your service sir I hope we see you again in public office.
7
GOP nihilists don’t care. They care about themselves only and they got the tax cut and donor relief they so desperately needed.
3
Comey lost all credibility with his decision not to prosecute Hillary Clinton because he thought she didn't intend to break the law.
We are now looking at a disgraced former FBI director who is seeking vengeance for being fired while trying to make a lot of money with his fictional book.
3
Does this mean that we should be prosecuting Trump & others who are using outside email servers too?
1
Trump clearly despises Comey. It speaks well for Comey.
10
Calling him "unfit" is the bigger headline. And the more tragic news.
1
I think Trump needs to go (to jail) and never-should-have-been. That being said, I can't believe that people actually argue they didn't want to know that HRC campaign and sensitive emails ended up on Anthony Weiner's computer. If I was a "former" KGB spymaster in the employ of Vlad the Putin, serial sexter Weiner is the first person I would target. It is so obvious and would require such little work to get every ounce of inside intel. I back Comey's decision to release that information.
2
Trump, Comey, Kardashians, Housewives. They've all begun to look alike.
Please get your eyes examined before taking this test: Which one of these is NOT like the others?
1
EPITAPHS
“Here lies a good man who made a terrible mistake.”
The “good” must be there as well as the “mistake.”
That’s what makes it human, tragic, Shakespearean.
Beside him, in this imaginal graveyard, is another tombstone with the same epitaph and the name of:
“Tony Blair”
If we pull back far enough we will see that this is but one section of the imaginal graveyard of collective human consciousness, entitled:
“Good Men Who Made Terrible Mistakes”
And then the tragedy. Beside this section is a much larger one, entitled:
“The Victims of All Those Good Men Who Made Terrible Mistakes”
1
Who are we going to believe? The man who has cheated on all three wives and who cannot hire a lawyer to defend himself, or the world's tallest Boy Scout?
8
Ah, the all-encompassing male ego! Comey made a big mistake about the Hillary emails by reintroducing the topic just before the election. He let his ego run his conscience. But he at least acknowledged it. And Comey should have refrained from lowering himself and indulging in the same ego-driven school-yard taunts -- small hands, height slights and orange skin comments -- that Trump hurls at other. However, Comey clearly does have a moral compass (with male ego attached!). Trump (who has NEVER admitted he was wrong, made a mistake or ever owned up to ANY responsibility!) clearly does not, Who would YOU believe?
4
Trump’s first lie as president came when he had his hand on a bible.
9
The Times is stopping low in covering two prima donnas fighting over their public image. However, Comey spoke a lot of truth about Trump’s thuggery and immorality and corruption. It’s something we New Yorkers have known since the 1970s—Trump went from a child bully to a thug real estate developer, and put his name on the national map calling for the death penalty against children who were later found not guilty. Racist, obscene, childish and pathologically narcissistic are not qualities on any wish list for President, whether of the PTA or the USA.
6
'Comey Calls Trump a Serial Liar and .... '
From what I understand, Trump supporters could not care less. In fact, from what they apparently often say, it is just the way they like it.
6
Wrong to elaborate on Hillary, wrong to announce further investigation just before election, wrong to write this now (cha-ching). A typical disgruntled former employee. A flawed FBI man.
2
Tweet on, Trump. Bring in your "hot mess" team of finger pointers and let the lying and the blaming go nuclear.
3
The only excuse I keep hearing is fake this or fake that from Trump. The only thing fake is him as president. He is supposed to be serving the people. The only thing he is serving is himself. Fake President!!!
8
Go Comey, Go!
What the devil knows: Evil is the handmaiden of all politics, whether domestic or foreign.
1
If anyone can clearly identify a lying, cheating, law breaking con-man, it would be a man who was a law clerk, lawyer, US Attorney, Dept Attorney General, Special Counsel and Director, FBI.
2
Quite frankly, you just can't argue with the fact that trump IS a serial liar and IS morally (and ethically) unfit to be president!! Comey deserves far better that trump's childish reactions.
3
What America is seeing between Comey and Trump, happens in probably every corporate office across the country. Especially, when you have two Type A personalities going after each other. Though, it doe snot reach the level of playground name calling, but more "colorful and salty" language.
With that said, Comey said, what many people think about Trump. When you have over 60% of the country who think badly of Trump, it is not surprising.
I strongly agree Trump is "morally unfit" to be President of the United States. I also feel that he has not only debased his office, but is involved, in activity, that borders on corruption. As for his behavior, besides being immoral, but also boorish. Finally, his indecisiveness borders on complete ineptitude.
While, so far, Trump has not yet seen as committing a criminal act, while on office, or before taking office, his constant failures, as a person, continue to overshadow his presidency. Then again, if lewdness, immoral, untruthful, indecisive, and ineptitude were crimes, he certainly can be impeached.
Trump's response, to Mr. Comey, and the events of the past several weeks or so, indicate that Mr. Mueller is getting very close. Close enough, that Trump's days a numbered, and possible criminal charges are forthcoming.
6
Having this story interspersed with Trump's tweeted retorts is one of the most unnerving, embarrassing things I've ever experienced reading.
We would be a laughingstock, if this man did not also control the world's largest nuclear arsenal.
7
I'm still not convinced we know the full extent of Russian meddling in the election. Perhaps one day we will learn that Comey's goof up days before the election was really a minor footnote to history.
Until then, we get hints. I think if you believe the outdated voting software and machines are impervious to hacking, you're missing the bigger picture.
https://theintercept.com/2017/06/05/top-secret-nsa-report-details-russia...
see also:
https://www.npr.org/2017/07/20/538312605/the-insecurity-of-americas-old-...
2
Comey is a self-promoting, holier than thou, fired employee, bloated with his own, as one NYT contributor wrote, “hubris.” He knew Hillary broke the law with her emails. But even if she did, she was the wife of an ex-president, past senator, a past Secretary of state, running for the presidency. Most important for him, he thought she would win. He gave her a pass. But as far as the investigation he carried out concerning Trump and Putin, he later testified that he could find nothing that indicated Trump colluded with Putin and furthermore he found no evidence that the Russians influenced in any way the results of the election. He got fired because he would not release information about his findings. After he was fired though, he contacted a friend to leak information to the NYT and waited until he could be broadcasted on national TV during his testimony to Congress. His own admissions, as Nate Silver was quoted tweeting, “cut against his image as an honorable, principled decision-maker. Instead, he was just being expedient and trying to save his own hide.” In this op-ed, Mr. Blow also somehow to wants bring up the 500,000 deaths in Syria when he mentions Trump. Trump was not president in 2012 when Putin come to Obama with a plan to bring the two sides together to form a government and Assad would be out. Obama refused to even consider it. At the time, approximately 7200 had died in the conflict. Whoever you want to blame for the other 492,000, it certainly wasn’t Trump.
1
The White House has essentially waged a war against Comey's character since his firing. I don't think it unreasonable for him to respond. Nothing in accounts that have been publicly revealed shows he did anything so egregious as to warrant firing ( let alone the personal attacks by the President designed to go after his character and humiliate him).
Comey comes off as a boy scout that tries to do the right thing regardless of the consequences. He's been attacked by both Democrats after the election for costing Hillary and by the GOP for the Russia investigation. TO me, that's a good sign that you're doing your job in a non-partisan way--if both sides are attacking you then you're likely playing it straight and they're upset you're not on their side.
9
I very rarely find myself agreeing with Mr Trump's assessment of anything, but I could see how "slimeball" fits in Comey's case. How such a big man could be so slippery amazes me, with his maybes, and perhapses, and innuendos and subtle digs. Dignified, noble and honest he definitely is not. He's wildly confabulating around the Clinton investigation and his damaging intervention in the election, where Trump's other comment, "showboat", quite aptly applies. Smug, self righteous, mendacious . . . I frankly was shocked and dismayed by Comey's performance. Just like he helped Trump win the election, his intervention now will no doubt help solidify Trump's political support. Slimeball indeed.
3
Excellent assessment from Vancouver, BC.
1
Comey may have acted with less than ideal judgement, but, unlike Trump,
he appears truthful and well meaning. Comey's skewering of Trump is in response to Trump publicly lying about his interactions with him designed to attack Comey's character.
8
I am certainly not a Trump person; truly, he is morally unfit for the Office he’s been tragically elected to. Comey, just by comparison, looks like a saint! For example, compared with a pathological liar in giving testimony, who wouldn't look like a saint? The thing is though, the toxic back-and-forth now on public display between Trump and Comey has a great cost for this nation, both within and without. And maybe especially for where we presently “are.” How can a nation that behaves so childishly at such a grand scale be taken seriously? And in what way is it “united?” What’s being accomplished, besides a side show? Trump has soiled this nation to the extent that in everyday response to him it is soiling itself in an unrelenting way of national decline. The nation doesn’t need a monarch, but it does need carefully chosen mature servant leaders.
3
I disagree with Mr Comey. Trump needs to be impeached. Personally I want his reputation ruined as President of the USA and I want it to go down in history that he was impeached and therefore disgraced. I don't want bridges, libraries, roads, airports or any other public works to be named after him. I want his portrait removed from the White House. I want oblivion for his "legacy."
16
Impeachment is not enough. Impeachment is only the equivalent to a criminal charge. Trump would need to be convicted after a trial in the Senate and removed from office.
I agree but I would like the financial crimes exposed as well.
---THAT was some awesome TV! After hearing what both Comey and trump have claimed regarding their meeting, and after considering the myriad of other comments, disclosures and actions that have come from the White House since Comey's firing, I have to say that I...believe Comey, and find him to be far more credible than...the lower-case president.
8
Why doesn't Comey sue Trump for defamation? Even as a public figure Comey has the right to protect his name from criminal accusations.
8
Omitted from these discussions is THE ACTUAL reason that Comey revealed when he did that further investigations into Clinton’s emails were beginning. That reason was the drum beat on right wing talk radio that Comey had shown partisanship in not following up on the emails and declaring that there was no criminal activity. (from Limbaugh & Howie Carr to Fox News)
It wasn’t concern over a tainted victory by Hillary it was a cave in to right wing media.
Furthermore though I disagree with the hypocritical civil servants (Comey) who are able to keep their hands clean working in a unionized civil service job protected atmosphere, versus the cut throat dog eat dog world that is the dreaded private sector – both Comey and Trump are out there doing what they perceive to be needed to be done.
The fodder for this whole melee is the political correctness that feeds Trump and his followers furor.
If PC goes out the window the price will have been worth the mayhem.
1
Mr. Comey continues to peddle the dossier stories but refuses to state whether evidence supports them. Mr. Comey, like Mr. Trump, trades in rumors and insults; Mr. Comey's less bombastic style does not render his mudslinging less reprehensible than Mr. Trump's.
3
Hoxworth, Mr. Comey cannot divulge to YOU, or to anyone else at this point, whether there is evidence supporting the dossier stories. Nor should he! But I can tell you that if you do a little online research, you will find that 60%-70% of the dossier has been verified...that means 60%-70% of those stories are TRUE. It is neither Mr. Comey's job, nor would it be legal, appropriate, or moral for him to tell YOU or anyone about the ongoing investigation, (other than mentioning that the dossier exists) just as Mr. Mueller keeps his mouth shut about it. When the investigation is complete, and the people who administrate the investigation are ready to divulge the facts to the American people, then you will know. And not until then.
2
I won’t be buying the book - not because I’m not interested, but because all the parts that matter have been thoroughly reported on in the press. I don’t need to know about James Comey’s childhood.
So who will buy the book? Answer: only a subset of those who already agree with him and vociferously hate Trump.
The sad truth is that this book will change no minds.
2
As it was always, there are enterprises with bosses and there are those that work for them. The basic rule is that the boss is right unless it is illegal and even then he could fire you so do what he says. Most of us have worked for someone at some point in our lives, and we have come to expect fairness in our jobs;do work get paid and don't get fired for no reason. But there are those bosses who violate this trust. At base Trump is one of those, not just in this case but apparently in his core business, as he shorted and cheated subcontractors. Perhaps we may respect his tenaciousness. Still, cheating to win is not honorable. So, if Comey is right and he lies and cheats and Comey knew it, he had to go.
This is a Kabuki morality play and we are "Amusing Ourselves to Death" (Postman). When does Honor win over Perception and regain its rightful place in the Pantheon of gods? When does Honor defeat Hubris? Perception itself had been poisoned by Fake Facts and Lies, and so has no truth at all. So we need not look to Trump or Comey, we must look into ourselves, we are citizens, not subjects. We have the responsibility to ourselves to define Honor.
2
The latest Economist has a Lexington colum that sums up Trump's promise to "run the country as he ran his family business....nepotistically, autocratically, with great regard for his personal interests and little for the rules." He "bent anti-nepotism laws to install his daughter and son-in-law" in the White House. He has "retained his business interests and cloaked his finances in secrecy." He has "spent a third of his time as president at his commercial properties." He "persists in claiming to have or deserve sweeping powers over Congress, the judiciary and the constitution, no matter how often he is reminded that he does not." And in his choice of attorney, says Lexington, "no one save Mr. Trump represents the president's tarnishing of American democracy more than Mr. Cohen." What is truly appalling is how Trump's Republican enablers have become accomplices in his assaults on American democracy, right down to an RNC web site that lies about and trashes honorable Republicans who continue to oppose him.
7
I found Mr Comey, in his interview, to be honest,trustworthy,intelligent,well-spoken, and fair. There are things I wish he had not done,but I believe he acted with integrity. Mr. trump embodies none of the above qualities. How anyone can say that Trump is not a liar,and immoral is beyond me, but I am sure the Fox crowd has already spread their hate. It is sad that we have to have this war between truth and lies fought every day. You can deny a lie but you can’t deny the truth,at least not with any credibility.
4
Trump is morally unfit? Is that a revelation? Is that actionable in a process to remove him? Does anyone in Congress feel an increased urge to do something about this??
4
I will believe Comey over Trump in a heartbeat but his interview last night sounded more like a revenge against Trump for firing him, regret and redemption towards HRC. He decided to release the emails solo without consulting his boss Lynch. Say what you may but Comey did hand over the Presidency to DJT.
1
The fact that Donald is immoral and lawless (and mentally unstable) has been apparent since long before the election. I think people are just getting worried about it now that he is moving closer to WW III. Isn't that a little late?
3
Comey’s grandstanding on the HRC investigation turned the election over to Trump. He had no authority as the FBI Director to decide whether HRC should have been prosecuted for her mishandling of classified material and her attempt to destroy evidence. That decision lay with DOJ. I would have fired him for that alone. His attacks on Trump are, in part, an attempt to burnish his tarnished legacy. He doesn’t come to this with clean hands. Trump should be impeached and removed. In the end they both deserve termination.
2
Sadly, Comey has decided to fight this battle on Trump's home turf, a pig sty. He hasn't a chance. Worse yet, the story is now about Trump vs. Comey not Trump's fitness for office.
What's happening here is similar to what happened with the Steele Dossier. Instead of investigating the serious charges in the report, the press with a push from the Republicans made it all about Steele.
4
I just read this in your information section "To be approved for publication, your comments should be civil and avoid name-calling." which I appreciate and will try to follow.
I will admit I have tended toward the name calling because we have a President who is uncivil, a bully and name calls. I wish one of the requirements to be POTUS was to be civil.
Comey has is right on the edge of name-calling but not quite because he is literally describing what he sees and the behavior that he witnesses and sadly Trump's behavior is uncivil.I agree with your title and Comey's descriptions, it is at least reassuring to see it in print, Trump is morally unfit and a stain. I just pray and hope that more of the people that are turning a blind eye to all this, wake up and renounce it.
4
I do believe that two wrongs do not make a right.
But I also believe that if this "president" that has been illegally foisted upon the American people, can call everyone that he so chooses, derogatory names...that we, in turn, have the right, to brand him with the monikers that we see fit to describe him. If that means we are "calling him names," then so be it. He should not be the only one in the country allowed to insult, demean, belittle, and derogate anyone whom he sees fit to use as a punching bag or a scapegoat. This tactic, by the way, is the essence of a malignant narcissist.
Additionally, I believe that when this entire trump/GOP debacle is over, that trump will be spewing invective at all the American people...blaming us for his downfall. Because that is what he does.
1
There's no value in just trading insults. The difference is that Comey cites specifics of what Trump has done. Trump (as usual) just calls names ... in Trump's mind anything that Trump doesn't like is a "crime."
4
To say that Trump is "morally" unfit makes you wonder what Comey was thinking when he chose to redirect the election. Trump is in fact temperamentally and intellectually unfit. Among other things, he is semi-literate, probably the first president since Andrew Johnson to be unqualified in this way.
3
Trump lies about everything every day. He lied about his "reason" for firing Comey, but we don't know the reason. What we do know is Don al Dough did not consult with his cabinet or any advisors about the issue of firing Comey.
His consigliari might have advised against firing Comey, at the least, instead of shooting Comey in the back, summon Comey to the Oval Office and ask for his resignation, to wipe away the democratic bitterness and unite the nation.
But Trump didn't.
Trump also ordered the log book of visitors to the White House and Oval Office sealed, so we don't know who visited those first few days, or why they may have wanted the visit to be kept secret.
Trump also defended Putin to Bill O'Reilly that Putin was not a thug because we kill people, too. When O'Reilly wanted to know why Trump was saying that, Trump changed the subject.
Had Trump "let Comey go," giving Comey the reason, so he, Trump could unite the nation, the paper House of Trump would not be on the brink of collapse. One of the missing pieces in the Comey puzzle is in the White House log book.
3
We do know Trump's stated reason for firing Comey by the explanation he gave to the Russians he had invited into the Oval Office. Recall that Trump's "explanation" was composed of insults and attacks on Comey's character. He's still doing it, but now we see it through the lens of mob boss behavior, and it's really ticking him off.
1
When Comey "exonerated" Clinton from the email controversy, he did so in a very unusual fashion by adding that she was "guilty" of gross negligence in handling the matter, but the negligence didn't rise to the level of a criminal offense. He was trying to protect himself from the decision to exonerate her.
With that in mind, the decision to reopen the email controversy before the election was a death blow to Clinton's chances to win the election.
As a democrat, I couldn't help but feel that the GOP was exercising some leverage over Comey (a Republican) at the time. He should have not been wishy washy and just exonerated her Period. I have come to revile Twitter, which gives an unhinged individual like Trump the opportunity to say whatever he thinks, regardless of the truth. Going back and forth between the cable news programs (Fox, MSNBC, CNN) accomplishes nothing. At this point there is only one way to prove if Trump is a crook. That is, forcing him to produce his income tax returns. If he had nothing to hide, those returns would either convict or exonerate him. Is he still using the argument that his returns are being audited? Prove it. After all, being president can demand that the returns be produced. Let's end it, because our country is fast falling to the status of a banana republic.
My opinion on the public re-opening of the Clinton investigation is that Comey
had second thoughts in his fixing the exoneration of the Clinton gang and did this to redeem himself. I cannot think of any other reason why someone with his experience and intelligence would have decided to take such a course.
It is my position, that he knew that exonerating Hillary was wrong but succumbed to the pressure to do so. It was his way of correcting the course of the ship to a Hillary defeat, one that he should have piloted on July 5th, 2016. No harm no foul - except for him of course.
Mr. Comey, on ABC: “Our president must embody respect and adhere to the values that are at the core of this country... the most important being truth. This president is not able to do that. He is morally unfit to be president.”
Is that news?
5
It is news that the former FBI director said those words.
Go Comey Go!
Please keep trumpeting the message Trump Is Morally Unfit!
Even though we already knew it, it is worth of repeating again and again.
11
Parents used to teach that lying is not OK and some even say it's a sin. Are some parents saying to their children that Trump's dishonesty, bullying, and serial lying is not just OK but something to look up to? If so, we are witnessing the death of America, not by terrorists but by immoral Trump supporters.
11
War indeed. You can't get publicity like this at any price!
1
Mr. Comey: You're 18 months late. At least half of us have known that since before you handed him the election.
11
On a certain level, James Comey is the REASON for this mess - with the gratuitous comments about the email so close to the election.
Thank you James Comey
5
If the Trump presidency does not spell the end of the Republican Party it will spell the end of the United States constitution. Cowardly Republicans across the spectrum are running away from their White House problem. As usual, the Democratic Party will have to pick up the pieces. After Trump’s impeachment I hope the pieces are big enough to put back together.
9
One of the many points overlooked are impact of these false moral equivalencies which support a concept of 'opinions' are facts. When opinion is accepted as fact, there can be no road to any path for correction.
Is Comey correct that DJT's character makes him unsuited for any type of public service, much less, POTUS. ABSOLUTELY! Did Comey's actions in allegedly reopening the HRC email investigation 10 days prior to the 2016 election violate the directions of Loretta Lynch? ABSOLUTELY!
Each act by each participant is mutually exclusive. DJT's actions manifestations of a con-man mentality. Comey, seems to believe in victim blaming coupled with a mistaken belief that he was compelled to act.
DJT's conman approach to America and the world are dangerous for 100% of the population, even the 1% he benefits. Comey, blames victimized Americans for being conned, rather than advocating for the impeachment of the entire POTUS administration & relying upon those same victims, absent their real knowledge about history, civics & the complexity of social problems, or international nightmares, to vote consistent with real fact.
When are the American people ever going to learn that life is expensive from a mixed political, economic, social, psychological, medical, educational perspectives? No bargains on cost no matter what Fox News claims & Republicans promise. Elitists, no, but commonsense. No one can be the Ms. Cleo of American elections.
Remember when we had a president who spoke in an educated, intelligent manner about subjects of interest and importance to the nation?
18
Sure Comey has his flaws but I am grateful to him for having a spine to call out this wretched presidency while every other person of supposed integrity remains silent. As usual it's fun to watch people support trump without being able to use words like honest, decent, hard-working, informed. This entire reality show nightmare is an embarrassment to the country and all Americans, and there is only one person responsible.
5
"Mr. Comey insisted that [impeachment] would just “let the American people off the hook.” Huh???? I wish he had expanded on this during the interview with GS. This makes no sense to me.
It's now pretty well accepted that the election was rigged - Trump himself has said that over and over. The thing he neglects to mention is that it was rigged in his favor.
Impeachment is the only way to rectify this.
4
I believe that Comey meant that it is the responsibility of the people who elected Trump to get rid of him. In reality voting him out is the only way to get rid of Trump because the Republicans in Congress are in his pocket and will defend him to the death of our Constitutional Government.
1
Mr. Comey, as for "letting the American people off the hook," it is you who put us there.
Trump has already proved himself, in every possible way, to be utterly unfit for office. Now, Mr. Comey, by choosing the low road, by descending into petty, undignified insults about hand size and the like, you are reinforcing the despairing belief, among so many of us, that your ego and your self-righteousness cost Hillary Clinton -- and our country -- the election. Mr. Comey, you let yourself be guided by your own towering self-regard. Why else would you not have announced, as you were pillorying Hillary, that Trump's campaign was also under an open investigation? You stacked the deck.
Although you might have more reason for such a sterling opinion of yourself than does the abysmal Trump, I won't choose between the two of you.
You, Mr. Comey, were a key player in the Trump electoral college victory. Not until you begin to acknowledge that this is the case should any of us grant your special pleading.
As for Trump...well, he put himself beyond the pale long, long ago. "Duty bound to vote him out of office?" We -- the popular voters -- didn't vote him INTO office, Mr. Comey -- and had you not done what you did, those 77,000 votes that gave Trump an undeserved electoral college majority...oh, what's the use?
3
What dismays me is the total silence on the part of the former president Obama, in defense of Comey from those ugly attacks by Trump. Comey served under Obama for four years. Does Obama have any thing good to say about Comey's character and work?
1
President Obama is following the tradition of all ex-Presidents and not commenting on a sitting presidency.
I agree as far as Trump is concerned. But in defense of Comey?
--and yet Comey stayed quiet until he had a book deal and the prospect of making millions. Where is the honor in that?
2
Comey is not the President.
1
The fact that President Trump has not figured out by now that criticism comes with his position bewilders me. A good leader needs to "stay above the fray" and tend to business. He just can't do it, and he rails against it with his usual rote insults. Trump is not just unfit for the presidency morally; he is also unfit intellectually.
32
The more animated this ‘president’ gets, the more rude his barrage of insults becomes, the more he proves Comey’s assertions. Trump would do himself and the country a great service if he just shut up, stopped tweeting and at least acted like he cares about our country and it’s institutions, our history and a productive future above and beyond himself.
I fully believe he will utterly fail in that endeavor.
The midterms can’t come fast enough, when hopefully both house will switch parties - effectively rendering 45 a dead letter.
23
It is surprising to me how much criticism is heaped on Comey for his comments about Trump and how they show a lack of respect for the President. Seriously?? Donald Trump constantly demeans people, gives them ugly names, calls them liars and demands that they be investigated and or arrested. He respects no one. Comey is simply talking Trump's language and Truth To Power, something that the gutless Republicans in Congress have lacked the courage to do. Comey is trolling Trump, attempting to provoke him into a self destructive mistake. Comey seems willing to risk his reputation in order to set the Nation straight. Trump seems eager to take the bait. This where we are right now...
25
If President Trump wishes to be taken seriously, and not merely shrugged off as "Oh well, Trump's gonna Trump", then he needs to drop his default strategy of leading off by delegitimizing every source he believes paints him in a negative light. It's what he always seems to use instead of facts and evidence. Remember how Meryl Streep was an "overrated" actor, or how the musical Hamilton "wasn't very good"? If you praise him, you're wonderful terrific, tremendous. And if you disagree with him, you're a liar, incompetent, worst ever.
I'm also curious abut just how infatuated he is with the history of FBI directors over the years that he was able to confidently say that Mr. Comey was *factually* the "worst ever in history". Brother, talk about niche history interests!
14
"An epic battle of wills"?
Come on, New York Times! This is unfortunate framing and comes across as false equivalence, such as a war between two strong nations, a debate between two well-matched intellectuals, or a boxing match between to hefty contenders.
I realize the NYT can't frame this as a battle between a knowledgeable, experienced credible federal investigator and a downright deranged, lying, purely self-absorbed evil megalomaniac, but that is how many of us see it.
Comey is no angel, but Trump is mentally unfit, a narcissist with several personality disorders, unstable, and a con--the worst president and cabinet in my long life, if not ever (according to the political science association).
So good for Comey for saying Emperor Trump has no clothes, is doing lots of damage, and needs a big dose of reality for his warped ego by being voted out of office.
(I prefer impeachment to get Trump away from doing any more harm and out of office asap, but Comey's comment was interesting.)
22
I applaud Comey to be someone who finally takes the gloves off and tell things like it is with Trump. Most everyone is restrained from saying it out loud, out of respect of the office of POTUS, and GOP ranks are too cowered to say it either. This is all while Trump seems to retain the license to calling names and bully everyone else. I'm sooo happy Comey is finally able to come out and call Trump a liar, and unfit for the POTUS office. Bravo.
21
Overseas, I have also repeatedly heard Trump described as a liar. Who exactly, except for his hardcore base, does Trump think he is fooling?
1
The American people saw the obnoxious, abhorrent, and racist behavior of Donald Trump during the campaign. There was no more glaring insight into his character than hearing him candidly discussing assaulting women. And yet, he still managed to get 63 million Americans to vote for him. Whether we want to confess this to ourselves or not, what this says about our country's populace is President Donald Trump is normal.
18
Mr. Comey should not be told to shut up just because it makes the family look bad. Enabling is not a good look for the nation.
13
I'm afraid the personal nature of Comey's attacks is only helping Trump.
4
Your front page comment that Jame Comey's remarks, "...amount to a remarkable public assault on a sitting president," is astounding. Highly respected mental health experts across our country have spoken out with great conviction regarding Trump's unfitness for public office, many of them taking great pains to explain how his psychological condition undermines his capacity to value and respect other people, engage himself in the disciplined manner the job requires, and preoccupies him with continuously guarding and preserving an inflated sense of himself, an orientation which is constantly power driven. It's unfortunate that the NY Times leadership fails to comprehend the severity and consequences of Donald Trump's psychologically debilitating condition.
15
This back and forth is pointless. Both men are badly compromised, although not equally.
4
I don't think I heard anything new about POTUS, although the former head of the FBI would know a mobster when he sees one.
However, I was struck by the lack of reflective thought by Mr. Comey about his own ill-timed and very public actions. Clearly, he still doesn't get it.
9
I feel as if we didn't watch the same interview. And viewers saw less than an hour's worth of the five hours the interview actually took.
Now that Trump has slandered Comey with accusations of “committing many crimes,” perhaps Comey will join the line of litigants seeking compensation from Trump, for one thing or another. Assuming, of course, there’s any money left.
7
What about those pianos for the casino? He would've to get in line after the piano supplier who I am sure is tired of losing.
DON’T impeach.
I agree with Comey.
Let the GOP live with and in the toxic, greasy stain they have spilled and smeared on our constitution and have to explain every day why it’s there.
VOTE! Democracy and our constitution DEPENDS on it.
We will need hundreds of millions of votes to “SHOUT OUT” this stain.
17
Three years is a very long time for the world to hold its breath!
4
November 2018 is OUR FIRST chance for change.
1
President Trump is this century's Eugene V. Debs.
The media world turned against Debs, a proud socialist, because his timing was bad. The creation of the Soviet state spooked the country, and Attorney General Palmer decided that this was a perfect chance to nail Debs, so Debs landed in prison for simply what he SAID. It was deemed treasonous by the Dept. of Justice to speak out against the First World War.
This is the path our angry Washington Swamp is taking against a President who violated the D.C. insiders' code. He is too much NOT a part of their world, so a once-respected Comey lowers himself to the level of a Democrat campaign-office fire-bomber just to get in one last attack at his enemy.
4
Hmm..."violated the D.C. insiders' code"??? I look at it differently. He has violated what is considered civil behavior and civil discourse even in most dictatorships!
Evidently Mr. Comey has not parsed his words. He has always struck me as somehow naive, amazing for somebody in his position, with his background, but the lack of guile and the forthright character produces a no nonsense answer. His judgements are the sort I would expect. As for Trump, he has the morals of a tomcat and has proven to be a serial liar to the point that I believe nothing he says.
4
I strongly agree that Trump is an amoral vacuum when it comes to human decency. By pretending not to notice, the GOP has taken the stance that objective reality no longer counts and that reality can be changed with enough money and bullying. We need a new conservative party that walks its moral talk. What we've got now is a degenerate mess.
14
"the GOP has taken the stance that objective reality no longer counts and that reality can be changed with enough money and bullying. "
This is the very same way that the George W. Bush administration behaved.
I can't remember who in his administration said "We create reality" or words to that effect. It shocked me at the time. Now, I consider it normal GOP behavior.
The GOP is a zombie political party lurching crazily as it destroys the government they hate. They hate it because it stands in the way of the wealthy donors enriching themselves even more.
1
"Serial liar who treated women like “meat,” and described him as a “stain” "? It reads like reliving the 70s. Ugh, rough times.
3
Another example of the pot calling the kettle black, or the kettle calling the pot black. Take your pick. Why cant any of the upper echelon get fired with dignity like the rest of us slobs.
3
Hillary Clinton said that she thought Comey cost her the election, which I do agree. Comey said he was sick to his stomach at the thought that he may have altered the course of the election. Of course, we will never really know for sure. But if that's true, then Trump should have gotten down on his knees and thanked Comey for that. Instead he calls him a slime ball and a hack. Trump is so stupid.
22
Charles Blow has it pretty right in his column today.
9
The interview and the book prove that Comey is deserved to be fired. His actions maligned FBI, usurped power, were interference in election and created a perception that powerful get special treatment and there is a double standard for laws application. These were some of the powerful reasons why Trump, a man with many flaws, became president.
3
No one I know who voted for Trump or didn’t vote for Hillary (of which I am one) ever cites Comey’s announcement as reason. It is very convienent to have someone to blame for HRC’s loss, but the true fault is her own. She didn’t even campaign once in some of the states she lost but was expected to win, and was a lacklucster candidate; remember the 2008 primary? Perhaps Comey had flaws in his presentation of the investigation, but saying he was a “powerful” reason in Trump’s election is a gross exaggeration.
I read recently that 89% of Republicans who voted for Trump still support him. If that statement is accurate and remains viable, even after Comey's revelations, this country is headed for some very dark times. I understand that Trump's supporters are happy to see the dial swing back to the right, and are willing to put up with his character flaws and narcissistic behavior, to achieve this shift. But it may already be too late to repair the damage he is doing to our democracy and rule of law. The bar has been set so low now, I fear what may come next.
32
Agreed. The GOP apparently fails to believe that it's America's system of government that has made it great. They are tearing that system down to empower a bully who tells them that they're great.
Yet considering what gnarly creatures Trump's most rabid critics morph into as they do so, I'd say dark times are ahead regardless.
The 12 most telling words in this entire article are, "The interview with Mr. Comey and the publicity tour for his book." One of the primary strategies of selling a book that can't really stand on its own is to make it a "tell all" and spark sales with a few in incendiary comments made in a media venue that is already hostile to the target. If one were to read this book they must consider the source. The irony that Comey, not to long ago, was the target of the Democrats ire, is now to be taken at his word. The man who was viewed as be vengeful toward the Clinton campaign has changed his colors, I guess.
2
This whole episode has opened the question about the extent of each American voter's personal integrity and his or hers notion of the 'good man' and what a role model for their sons looks like. The next set of elections is becoming very important.
What is obvious is that one man lives with a wake of lies and scandal trailing him and the other with a history of a desire to do the right thing.
21
Impeachment would "short-circuit" the electorate's responsibility? No way. Why does Mr. Comey imagine that our Constitution even provides for impeachment?
When the chief executive egregiously abuses his authority, such as obstructing an investigation into himself, he/she must be impeached and tried by Congress as prescribed.
The notion that the country should wait a couple of years in order to purge itself in a future national election is Comey's own fantasy--that's not the system we have. And I'm glad it isn't. The danger and damage a rogue president could invoke are truly unthinkable.
Comey has had a whole career to contemplate the rule of law at the highest levels. How can he take it upon himself to essentially re-write a crucial piece of our constitutional setup? HE is the "short-circuit."
1
Hindsight is 100%—I say to those who condemn Comey’s actions vis-a-vis Clinton. I was grateful for Comey’s admission that he saw that the situation was incredibly complex, with no perfectly clear solution. If only most of our public servants were this forthright and honest.
16
I’d actually aready heard much of Comey’s remarks during his testimony before Congress. Most interesting to me last night was that he is not in favor of impeachment. He feels that would short circuit the ability of our citizens to oust Trump through our democratic process. That is our obligation. Trump is not the problem. Those who voted for him are, and there are tens of millions of them. Enough of their need for a demagogue to solve their problems. Their votes need to be rendered invalid by a strong enough majority to get us past this stain on our constitutional democracy.
8
"Interview was just a theatrical show to sell more books."
I think Comey's sincere, though I concede his timing is a bit suspect: If he feels as strongly about this as he claims to, one wonders why he waited for his book tour to make it known.
On the other hand, he could argue that he DID make all this known, when he was fired, and that's a valid point. So valid, in fact, that I suspect his publisher sat him down a couple of weeks ago and said:
"Look, Jim, we both know there's nothing new in this book. If it's going to sell well, we need some controversy. So get out there and create some!"
Comey took that advice, and Trump has helped. My hunch is that book sales will spike because of this "war." I don't know that many of the book buyers will actually read the book (since even reviewers point out that it contains nothing new), but at least they'll buy it. Maybe they'll even read it, or at least tell visitors that they have.
2
On the one hand, how Mr. Comey handled his job is questionable. On the other hand, there is no doubt that Mr. Comey's heart is with American Democracy. Clearly he was shocked by the Trump election and is soul searching his part in it, but unable to come to grips with the reality of his decisions. Clearly his book and tour are a quest for Revenge, Atonement, and Redemption.
3
There could be no starker contrast of character than to compare James Comey with Donald Trump. Comey served this country honorably with integrity for years. Our country was safer because of him. Donald Trump has sullied our reputation, slimed those around him with his bile, and brought shame and corruption to the office of the President. You might not agree with how Comey handled the Trump/Clinton investigations, but it strains credulity to hear his character maligned by those on the extreme right. Character? Really??? If you want to see a bad actor on full display, look no further than the White House. James Comey is good for this country precisely BECAUSE he has angered both sides equally.
11
Well, his actions vis a vis Clinton were a mistake. Angering "both sides" is actually not always a virtue.
Mr Comey should have concentrated on fighting crime and catching real criminals when he was head of the FBI. Instead, he became embroiled in domestic politics and tried to sway elections. Even now, he should not pass moral judgement on a lawfully elected President of the United States. Under the rules governing presidential elections, the American People declared that they wanted Mr Trump to become President in November 2016. Mr Comey should gracefully accept that fact.
Well, we really don't know if he was "lawfully elected." But putting that aside, every citizen, Comey included, has an absolute right - indeed, a duty - to "pass judgment" on whoever is sitting in the White House. In this case, of course, there are more lies, derelictions of duty, etc., to pass judgment on - but either way, to say one should refrain from criticizing the president (any president) smacks of totalitarianism.
In reply to rms SoCal
As head of the FBI, Mr Comey was a federal employee, and should have supported President Trump, at least while he was still employed by the federal government. The purpose of the FBI is to fight crime, not to get mixed up in politics. Unfortunately Mr Comey became heavily involved in domestic politics.
Comey's book and interviews only feed Trump's continuous reality entertainment mind games. Comey is out there trying to explain himself to the public and playing right into Trump's hands. Trump is like a carney barker who decides who's going to be in the news and whether the story is going to be positive or negative. He's playing the American people, the GOP, and the media like a Stradivarius.
2
I think you give your man, Trump, too much credit. You imply he has a grand scheme, but he's an accidental president with absolutely no clue how to do anything other than sow chaos and misery.
He most certainly is not my man in any shape or form. I'm just stating the obvious power he holds over our country and its people.
I think Comey’s assessment of Trumps moral character and fitness for office are spot on, however I strongly question his timing and motivation of this book and these public discussions.
There is an FBI investigation underway on the President of the United States the severity of which this Country hasn’t seen since Watergate. A few of the most important unanswered questions involve Comey’s actions in the handling of Clinton’s emails and the leaking intel from his NYC FBI office. Neither of which Mr Comey can discuss due to the open investigation.
Yet here Comey is again, one year later, on his moral high horse, declaring impeachment is not enough for Trump, American voters need to be held accountable. Either insinuating there’s not enough evidence Trump committed any impeachable offenses, OR that the US electorate was totally to blame for Trumps narrow election.
Still without any admission of culpability in his own role for sending the confusing messages to the American people by the actions of his FBI right before the presidential election.
Mr Comey faults Trump for his insistence of loyalty for family, while he himself had clearly placed his own loyalty for the FBI over our Country.
1
"Yet here Comey is again, one year later, on his moral high horse"
It's telling that being moral and indignant is seen as being a poor character trait by so many. Shows just how far the US has fallen.
2
Like many, I am ambivalent about Mr Comey. I will not buy his book. His explanation for meddling in the 2016 election at the expense of Mrs Clinton is not a rationale but a rationalization. Nonetheless, Mr Comey is my enemy's enemy and therefore my at arm's length friend. The fact that Mr Trump has transformed this squall into a tempest makes me smile. especially since there seems to be little in Mr Comey's book that we didn't already know.
7
Whole lot of "ifs" here.... If Comey hadn't brought up the issue of the emails so soon before the election; if Ms. Clinton had won; if the trump and the GOP had unearthed the fact that Comey had buried the issue before the election ..... would she not be in exactly the same position as trump is in now - having the legitimacy of her Presidency questioned? And we would have never, ever, known about the investigation into Russian collusion with the trump candidacy.
I'm very sad that Ms. Clinton is not President; but I am extremely happy that everything about trump is out in the open, that he is being plagued daily by discovery of his "failings", that his presidency is being questioned - may it result in his being locked up, and may everyone else who colluded with him (his family, lawyers and enablers) join him in jail.
8
Politics a national sport like target practice. In the US and Britain nothing is sacred; the media has a duty to win the ratings war like NETWORK. In Britain the government issues Defense of the Realm notices to keep the public sufficiently ignorant; soft censorship? Some things are best kept secret? Journalism today simply comprises of opinions and tales of anguish from former FBI directors.
The Swiss have the right idea with board of governors in charge with an elected representative from each Canton. They meet once a month to declare peace on the world. Orson Wells in the THIRD MAN complained the Swiss were useless since there only achievement the cuckoo clock; and maybe the Swiss army knife? My point being that politicians seem to have outlived their usefulness whatever that was supposed to be nobody really knows now. On reflection Jimmy Carter the best US President since JFK? And the worst just arrived like a modern-day Roman tragedy.
1
Mr. Comey, if you, as you say, released the information on the investigation into Secretary Clinton's emails to prevent her Presidency from being de-legitimized, why did you not then announce the investigation into Donald Trump and the Russians? You can't have it both ways. It just does not ring true.
5
Why did he not announce investigation into DJT?
Because he was sure he was going to lose so it would not make any difference but after would appear as if he affect the election against DJT.
Either way, Comey was screwed. Hindsight is always better, but Comey should have said nothing about either candidate.
Don't forget Bill Clinton's little hit job on Hiliary by attempting a secret? meeting with Loretta Lynch on the tarmac. That really helped (not) Hliary a whole lot.
I empathize with Comey’s frustration and thought processes that led to him bungling away his career in a failed attempt to avoid the look of impropriety. And frankly for all the turmoil that has ensued since the election that he may or may not have contributed to, I can say that the silver lining has the potential to be a better system if we continue to allow Mueller the opportunity to do his job, we all take a critical appraisal of our current system and legislate against the flaws that have allowed our Grifter-in-Chief to buck accountability, by enshrining our political norms into law. So, thanks Comey?
4
This headline says it all for me. While Comey made human mistakes, he didn't lose his soul in the process.
9
I feel like I watched a different interview from many others here. I saw a very reasonable person lay out the situations, pressures, and rules he was constrained by as he made some difficult calls. I didn't see ego or anger, I just saw someone trying to set the record straight. I would rather he tell his story than not, and not let Fox write this history.
14
He should've resigned once Trump ignored the warnings on Russia; or demanded loyalty; or asked him to let Flynn go. Instead, he took notes of his interactions with the "Mob Boss" and then set out to make $5m from a book. In a world where everyone sells out for the right price, it seems Comey had his.
I still don't understand why he felt compelled to say he was re-opening the e-mail investigation of Clinton right before the election, while not disclosing the fact that Trump's campaign was under investigation. His reasoning seems to break down as it relates to Trump. I'd like him to take a lie detector answering some tough questions on that.
Comey explained in the interview that publicly disclosing information on the Trump case at that time would have compromised the investigation. Read the NY Times highlights of the interview.
1
I will go to my grave believing that Comey's October Surprise cost HRC the sliver of votes that tilted the scales in DT's favor. It was a razor thin margin but it was enough and Comey's announcement swayed enough ppl to stay home or change their vote. There must be some fatalistic outcome that we must live through as a cost of putting a hideous mind in the Oval Office.
2
I was thinking the same thing. Trump is teaching us some very valuable lessons about how ugly, evil, sinister people can shockingly prevail in our society.
This is a warning call to all americans to speak out and condemn this kind of hideous behavior and restore some civility in our White House.
One telling detail of the Comey book is that he relates that as President Trump asked him repeatedly to have the FBI investigate the "smear" that he believed the dossier represented and Comey repeatedly demurred.
That is good evidence that Trump knew he and his campaign were not guilty of the charges raised by the dossier. If he had been he certainly would not have wanted the FBI to prove Steele's veracity.
Comey has provided the evidence that the Steele is indeed "fake news".
trump needs to be called out for the disgrace he is and the peril he represents. Comey might not be the ideal person to do it, but he still has enough prominence and gravitas to give it force and make it meaningful. Despite my own misgivings about his past actions, I credit him for stepping up and saying what anyone in their right mind can plainly see. May he inspire others in positions of power, responsibility, or moral authority to do the same.
6
I believe James Comey vs. Trump any time and any day. A man who has dedicated his life to career that was all about doing what is right for Americans vs. a man who has only done right for himself - period.
I also don't believe, after speaking with many friends and acquaintances throughout the election of Trump that the Comey last minute news of further investigation into Hillary's emails tipped the scales and placed Trump in the white house. I believe the shaming of Hillary started with the Bengazi investigation, a very different investigation from Mueller's investigation into Russia hacking and disrupting our election. Folks were speaking badly about her long before Comey's announcement just prior to election day.
How anyone could actually vote for this man, especially after watching him on the Apprentice and hearing him on TV, the radio, etc. is beyond me. I hold all those who voted for him even after seeing his lack of any good character responsible for the mess we are in the shame the world views us with.
6
Who would you most trust with your life, and with the lives of your family members?
I knew that when tuned into CNN and I watched Comey testify before congress that there was another investigation of Hillary, that Trump had won. I walked outside for air, and my daughter, when she saw my face, thought something horrible had happened, and asked me if someone had died.
That said, when it comes to who I believe, Trump has and continues to make it impossible for me to believe him, and everything Comey says about Trump rings true, based on Trump's own words and performance.
4
Nothing has changed. Comey is still on a self-righteous binge like an Old Testament prophet and Trump is still all about himself. But Comey is not out there to knowingly harm our institutions save for his strange foray into HRC-related matters eleven days before the election and, now, his even more bizarre explanation for why he did so. Trump, however, having surprisingly gotten the presidency, is only doing what we all knew beforehand that he would do. Namely, that he would corrupt the institutions of governance while looking out for no one but himself. The surprise is that no one, repeat no one, has been able to put the brakes on him even after more than a year in office. Indeed, Trump is likely to go down (and go down he will) fighting all the way not because he is gutsy or anything remotely commendable like that but because he cannot help placing his precious ego above his own country's honor and dignity. I rather suspect that long after he has been eliminated from office he will continue screeching away from his Twitter perch at those who are better fitted for the presidency than he he ever was or will be. In the meantime, patience.
3
Comey is telling the truth. His problem is his zealotry, not from his veracity. It's why in his senate judiciary committee hearing he made sure to interject the quote from Henry II about "meddlesome priest," casting himself as the martyred Thomas Becket. Comey believes he's a saint. Rod Rosenstein, in his letter recommending that Comey be fired, laid out in precise and devastating detail how Comey horribly mishandled the Clinton investigation, how he repeatedly usurped the authority of the Attorney General's office, wrongly announced his conclusion that the case should be closed without prosecution when it was not his conclusion to make, and worse, then sanctimoniously cast aspersions on Clinton. As Rosenstein wrote: "we do not hold press conferences to release derogatory information about the subject of a declined criminal investigation." Further, it was patently wrong for Comey to justify making public that he was investigating the then newly-discovered (and meaningless) Anthony Wiener email messages on the ground that if he didn't he was concealing it. "Silence," particularly about unknown and questionable information, is most definitely "not concealment," Rosentein wrote. We saw this again in Comey's ABC News interview. He defended his indefensible failures on zealous moral grounds. Yes, Trump is unquestionably morally unfit to be president, but that was never Comey's business, Trump’s criminality was. Thankfully, Comey is gone, and Rosenstein and Mueller are in control.
1
Whatever else one may think of Comey, especially with regard to his role in the defeat of Hillary Clinton, he has the unmistakable aura of the truth teller. Yes, he is human-sometimes petty, sometimes self-righteous (I would be too, if I discovered from watching TV that I had been fired)-but I think his critics are being very disingenuous in suggesting either that he is equivalent in villainy to Donald Trump or that he wrote his book just to make money. Strongly disagree.
3
Most now realize that Trump is unfit-what to do? Republicans abandoning ship but few speak out-there needs to be a massive outcry and voter mobilization. The mid-term elections are crucial to stopping this destructive insanity.
3
James Comey admires the writings of Reinhold Niebuhr. The tension between 45 and Comey is illumined in Niebuhr's essay "The Ultimate Trust" found in his book, "Beyond Tragedy". The essay examines human history and religious faith up to the 20th century (contemporary with Niebuhr's life). The essay originates in and expands from Jeremiah 17.5. "A curse on anyone who trusts in mortals and leans on human kind, while their heart is far from God." An overarching principle guides this essay, despair and optimism are the opposing threats to faith. Both 45 and Comey are affected by different forms of optimism. Optimism distorts faith by putting too much confidence in human virtue or capacity. Comey closely aligns with Niebuhr's "intelligent pious person. This person "insists the final form of human society is a mild capitalism, joined with mild democracy, garnished with a mild philanthropy and perfected with a genteel religion." 45 is the "cynic who falsely equate ideals with their own achievements and regard other persons with bitterness because the latter will not measure up to their ideals, but are unconscious of the degree they themselves fall short of them." Hence, the peculiar posturing these two men and their camps have in facing each other. Being a Christian and a pastor- theologian, Reinhold Niebuhr's resolution in good old fashioned repentance, turning around and moving in a new direction. Would that would happen. May they not be the lone tree unaware of good being near.
Charles Blow headline says it for me: "Dislike Comey, Despise Trump". Not personally, but Comey seems to have a deficit in understanding the political consequences of the exceptions he makes for himself (Clinton attacks, failure to treat Clinton and Trump investigations evenhandedly in 2016). I thoroughly enjoyed Fire and Fury but Comey's style seems turgid so I'm going to rely on the neverending press reports and my memory to get the facts.
Still, Trump is such a disaster that anything that helps to keep this monster from making the world ever so much worse is a help.
10
Great reporting.
I’m a gay man who has been partnered for many wonderful years. My partner ,at times, has done a few things which I hated over the years but he is still a great and lovable man. The same goes for me-I’ve been awful at times but he still loves me!
Comey made a huge mistake re: HRC ( who I adore and still mourn her loss ) but now I look at the whole man and say Comey ON BALANCE is a flawed guy but with a definite moral center. Life is very complicated.
31
Stephanopoulos: “Do you think the Russians have something on the President?”
Comey: “I dunno. It’s possible”
Stephanopolous: “That’s STUNNING”
Lol. It’s “stunning” that the guy doesn’t know, and says “it’s possible”?
The whole interview was like that. Absolutely nothing revealing, or frankly, even interesting. I want my hour back.
23
Stephanopoulos was the stupidest hire by the political advocates running ABC in decades. It is now showing us what happens when what was journalism throws its code of ethics away to join in with the cool kids.
2
If a former head of the FBI had said that about any other president, it would have been STUNNING.
Trump has twisted normal so much, that this doesn't surprise you. This says more about you and Trump than it says about Comey and Stephanopoulos.
I agree entirely. It's "stunning" that "it's possible?" Seriously?
How in the world would Comey -- or you, or I, or any other American -- know whether the Russians have dirt on Trump? Of course, it's possible -- pretty much anything is "possible." To my mind -- and yours, apparently -- "possible" falls a tad short of "stunning."
1
Go, Comey !!!
About time someone had the guts to stand up to this disgraceful menace of a president.
60
Trump is a master at creating his own selfish, sick and distorted reality....and getting people to buy into it. Comey is doing his best to expose Trump’s world of selfish duplicity and falsehoods. As much as Comey has his faults, someone needs to do exactly what he is doing.....he is calling out Trump ...at his own egregious level.....that’s what it takes. Fight fire with fire.
48
Comey is revealing why he was fired, and how the FBI came to be a politicized arm of the Obama/Lynch/Hillary machine. This is the swamp in action.
8
Exactly
1
The phrase Deep State was coined to describe the billionaire donors that control policy from behind the scenes with their huge financial contributions. The swamp is the politician/lobbyists who long ago tore down the wall between politicians and the corporations that they own shares in, leaving the revolving door as a monument to their corrupt achievement.
Hillary did take their money (even Trump's) for policies that she delivered them.
But Trump bragged about bribing Hillary, and all of the other Republicans running for president. Trump is a leader of the Deep State, and hired a bunch of other billionaire deep state swamp monsters to his cabinet. He just cut out the middleman.
You can't hire a crony capitalist to fight the crony capitalists. He is blatantly using his office to steal.
The bureaucracy already had a name, the bureaucracy. The Deep State is not the career FBI agents whose job it is to hold political leaders accountable to the rule of law. By taking the side of the crony capitalists over the Justice Department and the rule of law, you are weakening the Constitution and our Republic.
Fox, Trump, and many Republicans and centrist Democrats are helping the crony capitalists loot our country. The constant demands for loosening campaign contributions coming from these people combined with the pro corporate policy they constantly deliver is obvious proof.
Step back and think through what these people are actually doing.
Honest people don't lie all the time.
1
Right..... So Comey / the FBI are supposed to be part of the left "machine". Is that why he helped Trump to win?
Funny logic - try again!
he talks like a politician...cant talk straight from the hip. he must be gutted with guilt at throwing the election to trump with his dumb oct surprise....sad man.
3
Comey is careful with his words because he know how powerful and dangerous words can be.
Trump is a man with nuclear missiles and history's largest army, shooting from the hip. It's completely irresponsible.
Words matter. You must take careful aim, or you risk hurting innocent people, or even shooting your own foot, like Trump does regularly.
The military and police train people to take careful aim and think about what they are doing, because it is more effective.
Shooting from the hip is not a good thing.
1
CONT XT please , Comey- criticizers!Loretta Lynch had to recuse herself because of her stupid shmooze with Hillarys husband on plane.Much as i was sick over Comey’s error in public comments about Hillary investigation reopening and omission about Trump being likewise investigated I felt and still feel it was unfair for him to be thrust in position he was never intended to have, hence his errors in judgment. Those who self- servingly( Richard Haas just now on Morning Joe) attempt to portray Comey’s consequential error as morally equivalent to the Mob boss destroying our democracy bit by bit, day by day , is far more concerning to me .
24
Every morning I wake up with a pit in my stomach. I wonder how we could have gotten here. I worry for my children and the ideals I believed in. I have mixed feelings about Comey but I do firmly believe that the man leading the country is doing tremendous damage. Damage to how we view ourselves, damage to other countries view us, damage to the basic ethic that governs the way we live our lives. He requires that we pick sides, has no concept of "do unto others" and loves stirring things up to further his own agenda - whatever that is. I am in my early 60s; i am not naive. I have succeeded in business; my early training and experience offered a career in American intelligence. This is the first time I wake up every day with a pit in my stomach because I wonder if enough of us have the ability to figure out how we got here, question ourselves, look at the facts and do what is best for our children's and the country's future.
72
Susan of Seattle, I too am in my 60s and I also wake up each day dreading to read about the latest tweet by the madman at the helm. We lived through Watergate but this is much, much worse because there were honorable Republicans who also saw the threat Nixon posed to the country. That is no longer true and we have a true Teflon president whose bullying is considered strength and whose name-calling is considered "telling it like it is" by his adoring base. I literally get a sick feeling in my stomach when I ponder the damage Trump and the GOP are doing. This country was forever changed after Watergate, but I fear what is ahead of us and I fear what Trump and the GOP will leave behind in their wake of dismantling our democratic principles, integrity, devotion to truth and ethical behavior. None of that seems to matter. If none of that matters, what becomes of us as a nation? Susan, if you see any light at the end of this very dark tunnel, please let me know.
3
It feels good, doesn't it? I am no fan of Comey. But I respect his essential integrity and work ethic. So, yeah, it feels good to hear him speak of Trump so accurately. But...
All this human energy poured into a bowl of muck. All this attention to a despicable human being. We could be talking about infrastructure, education and health care. We could be talking about who has the best plans to help people. We could be talking about dealing with climate change...
Instead, our national dialog is about hookers peeing on a bed.
63
Guess it remains to be seen if the fall election and its candidates force the conversation on the issues you lay out. One can hope. I think the whole world is now saturated with way too much icky info on what a disaster this Trump character is.
Bottom line: Whom would you trust with your life, Comey or Trump? For me, that's a no-brainer. I would steer clear of the snake who has made a career of throwing wives, one-time associates, investors, and a host of others under the bus. Comey has apparently always attempted to do the right thing; Trump has just always sucked the air out of the room, leaving all others to asphyxiate.
62
Did Comey screw up thinking Clinton would win, and he had to get out in front of impartial? Absolutely, but that is the Trump effect, the bad seed that corrupts and stains everything that came before. Comey over reacted, and that is his legacy, he went outside of his job description, the head of the FBI is not a bookie!!
11
Yes, the October Surprise most likely swung the election to Trump. Comey found himself in a box of his own construction when Anthony Weiner's emails were unearthed in the fall.
Comey felt he had to "go public" even before learning that there was nothing of relevance in the new cache of emails, but if he had stayed in his lane the previous summer instead of making such a spectacle of the non-indictment of Hillary Clinton, he could have remained silent about the renewed investigation unless & until it turned up something of import - which it never did. But he had excoriated Clinton while closing the case in the summer, so he felt obliged to stay in the public lane when the case was re-opened in the fall. (The investigation into the Russian interference remained quite properly out of public view).
The Fall Surprise was the progeny of the Summer Mistake. And the result for the nation is incalculable damage.
If Comey would own up to that, his version of events would have unassailable respect and power. Sadly, for all the important points he makes, his integrity suffers from his inability to say, "I screwed up." But his assessment of Trump is on target and we all must live with the consequences.
29
I think Comey is caught between a rock and a hard place even now regarding the investigation into Hillary's emails. If he says he "screwed up", Republicans will take that as proof that he regrets not protecting Hillary. He can't say he screwed up and still appear bi-partisan. I think his intentions were good and honest, it's just a case of unintended consequences.
"Comey was trying to do the right thing when he re-opened the Hillary case."
I agree -- that's what he was trying to do. There's considerable disagreement about whether he should have (and whether it really affected the election outcome, as HRC and her supporters have insisted), but I've always felt Comey's motives were pure.
When Comey screwed up, big-time, was in his July 2016 press conference, when he announced that the FBI had concluded its investigation of HRC without deciding to file any criminal charges. An FBI investigation is never really "closed:" the FBI just quietly moves on to something else if an investigation has yielded nothing and looks like it never will. Comey shouldn't have said that -- much less launched into his rant about HRC's "carelessness," whether he felt she'd been careless or not. By late October, Comey may have figured out that he'd made a big mistake months earlier, but the fact remained that he HAD made that mistake and had to deal with it in October. He did his best, I think, and I might well have made the same decision under the circumstances -- probably not, but it would have been a close call; I put a great deal of weight on his expressed presumption that HRC had the election "in the bag," and so it didn't really matter what he did. Most of us believed that at the time.
11
We all know that Clinton did have a private server, where she mixed government and private emails, and then went and deleted thousand of emails, by deciding herself which were private and which were government emails.
That was a really bad thing to do, especially the deleting part. Once you mix your private emails with official business, they are part of the public record and belong to the people.
It is what we know that Hillary did that hurt her, not what Comey said about it.
Snowflake hypersensitive Trump has no credibility. He is perpetually fuming with anger, name calling and always fighting with someone. Its a wonder he has any time to work... oh thats right he doesn't work. He is constantly denying things and trying to clamber out of his quicksand law suites. According to himself he is never wrong about anything. Nothing is ever his fault. BTW where are his taxes? He promised during the campaign he would release them after the election. It will take decades for the GOP to recover. He has destroyed it aided and abetted by cowardly conservative congressmen on the hill.
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Trump supporters would answer: Its the economy!
Comey, with his juvenile "digs" at Trump, has proven he's no better, and perhaps worse, than Trump. He leaked, we know that because he not only admitted it, but offered it up freely. He has, in my opinion, no credibility.
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RE: " He has, in my opinion, no credibility."
However more credibility than the sitting president. And therein lies our great misfortune as a nation.
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Comey is being excoriated for stating what is clear to anyone who watches or hears Trump, or reads his childish vindictive tweets. Comey has not stooped to Trump's level; he has described in detail what goes on down there. Don't blame him if telling the truth about Trump requires the use of the language Trump himself lives on.
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These two deserve one another.
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