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U.S. senators from Maine on the firing of James Comey
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President Donald Trump (R) fired Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director James Comey on May 9, 2017. Trump stated in a letter that he no longer had confidence in Comey's ability to lead the agency.[1]
Comey's dismissal occurred after Trump received a memo from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to Attorney General Jeff Sessions recommending Comey's removal. According to the memo, Rosenstein recommended Comey's ouster due to what Rosenstein and his colleagues viewed as mistaken actions taken by Comey during the course of the investigation into former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's private email server. Trump later stated that he had lost confidence in Comey's ability to lead the agency and had made the decision to fire Comey prior to receiving the memo. According to White House Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the memo was the "final straw that pushed [Trump]" to remove Comey from the post.[2][3]
Comey's dismissal sparked varying responses from congressional members. Many Democrats and Republicans expressed concern over the firing in light of the FBI's ongoing investigation into Russia's involvement in the 2016 presidential election. Others supported Trump's decision, stating that he had acted within his authority as president and citing many Democrats' prior condemnations of Comey during the course of the Clinton email investigation. Comey's removal also sparked calls from a number of Democrats to appoint a special prosecutor to lead the FBI's Russia investigation.[2][3]
On May 16, 2017, The New York Times reported that Comey had penned a memo documenting a conversation in which Trump allegedly asked Comey to halt an investigation into former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn. The report generated additional responses by congressional members.[4]
U.S. Senators from Maine on the firing of James Comey
Susan Collins (R)
U.S. Senator Susan Collins released the following statement regarding Comey's firing on May 9, 2012]</ref>
| “ | Today’s announcement is likely the inevitable conclusion of Director Comey’s decision last July to bypass the longstanding protocols of the Justice Department and publicly announce the reasons he had decided not to recommend an indictment of Hillary Clinton and to offer his personal views of Mrs. Clinton’s actions.
That decision, while well-intentioned, embroiled Director Comey into political controversies that unfortunately continued to this day. Any suggestion that today’s announcement is somehow an effort to stop the FBI's investigation of Russia’s attempt to influence the election last fall is misplaced. The President did not fire the entire FBI; he fired the director. I have every confidence that the FBI will continue to pursue its investigation. In addition, I am certain that the Senate Intelligence Committee, on which I serve, will continue its own bipartisan investigation and will follow the evidence wherever it leads. I hope that the next FBI Director will have the same kind of integrity, intelligence, and determination that Mr. Comey exhibited, but perhaps better judgment on when it is appropriate to comment publicly on the results of an investigation.[5][6] |
” |
Angus King (I)
U.S. Senator Angus King released the following statement regarding Comey's firing on May 9, 2017:
| “ | Based on what I know, it appears to me that the firing of the FBI Director was a solution in search of a rationale. To dismiss Director Comey based on actions he took last year, when the President has been in office for more than five months, just doesn't add up and raises more questions than it answers.
Furthermore, his dismissal is especially troubling given that there is an ongoing FBI investigation into contacts between Russia and the Trump campaign. His firing undermines confidence in the credibility of that process, and to restore it – both for me and for the American people – I believe it is not only appropriate, but urgently necessary to appoint a Special Counsel to carry forward the investigation. Meanwhile, I expect the Senate Intelligence Committee investigation to continue to proceed in a nonpartisan manner and follow the facts wherever they lead.[7][6] |
” |
According to CNN, King made the following comments regarding reports that Comey had penned a memo documenting a conversation in which Trump allegedly asked Comey to halt an investigation into former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn:
Could we be moving toward an impeachment process? “Reluctantly, I have to say yes,” Sen. Angus King says https://t.co/digVs7JDAd
— The Situation Room (@CNNSitRoom) May 16, 2017
See also
- Congressional responses to the firing of James Comey
- House Intelligence Committee investigation on Russian activity in 2016 presidential election
- Hillary Clinton email investigation
Footnotes
- ↑ The New York Times, "F.B.I. Director James Comey Is Fired by Trump," May 9, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 CNN, "Trump: I was going to fire Comey regardless of DOJ recommendation," May 11, 2017
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 NPR, "'I Will Be Fine,' Comey Reportedly Tells FBI Agents In Farewell Letter," May 10, 2017
- ↑ The Atlantic, "The House Demands to See the Comey Memos," May 16, 2017
- ↑ U.S. Sentoe Susan Collins, "U.S. Senator Susan Collins’ Statement on Director Comey," May 9, 2017
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ U.S. Senator Angus King, "King Statement on President's Firing of FBI Director James Comey," May 9, 2017