Comey says Trump insisted he wasn't 'involved with hookers in Russia'
Former FBI Director James Comey will testify before the Senate on Thursday, and his opening remarks have been released — and they're a doozy. In part, Comey details the uncomfortable task of telling Trump, when he was still president-elect, about the existence of "salacious and unverified" material that was "personally sensitive."
Comey explains that among the reasons for telling Trump about this information was that "we knew the media was about to publicly report the material." It appears Comey was referring to the content of an unverified dossier, which, among other allegations, claimed that Trump's "conduct in Moscow … included perverted sexual acts which have been arranged/monitored by the [Russian security agency] FSB."
After the inauguration, Comey again saw Trump, this time for dinner on Jan. 27. At the dinner, Trump apparently brought up the allegations:
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Think about it he did. On March 30, Trump called Comey about the material again:
Comey's testimony begins at 10 a.m. ET Thursday. Read his entire introductory statement here.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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