James Comey reportedly asked Jeff Sessions not to leave him alone with Trump

(Image credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

last updated 7 June 2017

Following a one-on-one meeting where President Trump asked former FBI Director James Comey to drop the investigation into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, Comey told Attorney General Jeff Sessions he never wanted to be left alone with Trump again, current and former law enforcement officials told The New York Times.

In February, Comey pulled Sessions aside and told him that he felt several of his private interactions with Trump had been inappropriate, and he wanted Sessions to protect the FBI from White House influence, officials told the Times. Sessions told Comey, who did not reveal what he spoke with Trump about, that he couldn't promise him Trump wouldn't attempt to talk with him privately again. Comey wasn't sure if there was anyone he could trust at the Justice Department, officials said, and he told only his closest advisers about Trump's request.

After each of his meetings and phone calls with Trump, Comey wrote out detailed memos that were left in the FBI's files. It's unclear if Comey kept copies of those memos or if he will read from them during his testimony Thursday in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee, the Times reports. It's expected that Comey will be asked all about his interactions with Trump, and people familiar with how Comey is approaching his highly anticipated testimony told CNN he will likely dispute Trump's claim that Comey told him he was not under investigation and will not give a definitive answer as to whether Trump obstructed justice in the Russia investigation.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.