WASHINGTON – FBI Director James Comey, whose agents are pursuing multiple lines of inquiry that intersect with the Trump administration and who himself is under a Department of Justice Inspector General investigation, has told people he has been asked to stay in his post, people familiar with the matter say.
Comey told FBI senior leaders of the decision on a recent teleconference call, though the bureau and the White House declined to confirm it Tuesday.
Under normal circumstances, the revelation might have been unsurprising: Comey is less than four years into a 10-year term, and it is extremely rare for a president to remove an FBI director. But President Trump had notably declined to say whether he would keep the FBI director, telling “60 Minutes” in an interview after his election that he wanted to meet with Comey first.
The New York Times first reported the development.
Comey has come under fire from both sides of the political aisle in recent months, especially for his handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation. He also will likely have to walk a political tightrope as the FBI pursues an investigation that intersects with the new administration.
The bureau is continuing to explore Russian hacking and interference in the presidential election that is believed to have been conducted, in part, to help Trump win. Agents are also reportedly looking into allegations that Trump associates or acquaintances might have had improper contact with Russian officials or intermediaries.
Comey personally told Trump about a dossier that included supposed compromising personal information about the president, people familiar with the matter have said.
At a news conference Monday, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Trump “has not made any indication that he would stop an investigation of any sort.”
At times, it has seemed Comey has few friends in politics. When he announced in July that he was recommending that the Clinton email investigation be closed without charges, Republicans lambasted the FBI director for – in their view – coming to the wrong conclusion on the facts he himself laid out.
Months later, when Comey revealed to Congress that the probe was back on less than two weeks before the election, Democrats lambasted the FBI for violating long-standing Justice Department policies about taking overt steps in an investigation so close to the day when voters would go to the polls.
Even Justice Department officials had advised against Comey taking the actions he did, and Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz is now reviewing Comey’s conduct in the case. Comey has said he welcomes the review.
The criticism of Comey, though, is not limited to the Clinton investigation. After a recent closed-door briefing from intelligence officials about Russian hacking, some House Democrats called for Comey to resign. They claimed the FBI director was not treating the Trump-related and Clinton-related investigations the same, particularly in his willingness to discuss the matters publicly.
“He should pack his things and go,” said Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga.
Senate Intelligence Committee leaders have said they will explore for themselves alleged links between Russia and the 2016 political campaigns as part of a wide look at the intelligence community’s report on Russian hacking, and some on the left have called for a special prosecutor to be appointed.
Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., Trump’s pick to be attorney general, said in a recent response to a questionnaire that he was “not aware of a basis to recuse myself from such investigations,” though if a “specific matter arose where I believed my impartiality might reasonably be questioned, I would consult with Department ethics officials regarding the most appropriate way to proceed.”
A spokeswoman for Sessions declined to comment for this story.
The law would allow Trump to remove Comey, though a president rarely takes such a step out of respect for the independence of the FBI director’s position. President Bill Clinton removed Director William Sessions in 1993 amid allegations of ethical improprieties, making him the only director to be removed from his post by the president since 1972.
Trump greeted Comey warmly at a White House reception on Sunday, shaking the FBI director’s hand, patting him on the back and remarking, “He’s become more famous than me.”
(c) 2017, The Washington Post ยท Matt Zapotosky, Ellen Nakashima, Sari Horwitz
Image: Washington Times
