Trump's personal lawyer insinuates Comey lied under oath
The conflict between former FBI Director James Comey and the White House ratcheted up a notch or two Thursday with Comey accusing the administration of lying, and President Trump's personal lawyer lobbing those charges right back.
In his response to Comey's testimony Thursday before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Trump's lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, insisted in a statement that "the president … never told Mr. Comey 'I need loyalty, I expect loyalty' in any form or substance." Comey quoted Trump as asking for his loyalty in his opening statement, released Wednesday, and expanded on it Thursday while under oath, claiming Trump's insistence was "in the context of asking me to stay" on as FBI director.
"Of course, the Office of the President is entitled to expect loyalty from those who are serving in the administration and, before this president took office to this day, it is overwhelmingly clear that there have been and continue to be those in the government who are actively attempting to undermine this administration with selective and illegal leaks of classified information and privileged communications," Kasowitz went on, adding: "Mr. Comey has now admitted that he is one of those leakers."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Kasowitz also pointed to moments in Comey's testimony that appeared to prove the White House right. "Mr. Comey's testimony … makes clear that the president never sought to impede the investigation into attempted Russian interference in the 2016 election," he said. Comey said Trump expressed his "hope" that Comey would let the investigation into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn "go," which Comey said he took as a "direction."
"In sum," Kasowitz concluded, "it is now established that the president was not being investigated for colluding with the [Russians] or attempting to obstruct that investigation. As the Committee pointed out today, these important facts for the country to know are virtually the only facts that have not leaked during the long course of these events."
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
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.
-
'Unthinkable tragedy'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Passenger: 'pleasingly off-kilter' ITV crime drama
The Week Recommends There's 'plenty to be feared' in this British murder mystery set in a quiet northern town
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
Crossword: March 27, 2024
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Hong Kong passes tough new security law
Speed Read It will allow the government to further suppress all forms of dissent
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
France enshrines abortion rights in constitution
speed read It became the first country to make abortion a constitutional right
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Texas executes man despite contested evidence
Speed Read Texas rejected calls for a rehearing of Ivan Cantu's case amid recanted testimony and allegations of suppressed exculpatory evidence
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Supreme Court wary of state social media regulations
Speed Read A majority of justices appeared skeptical that Texas and Florida were lawfully protecting the free speech rights of users
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Greece legalizes same-sex marriage
Speed Read Greece becomes the first Orthodox Christian country to enshrine marriage equality in law
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump and his lawyer Alina Habba have a rough day in defamation court
Speed Read Trump's audible grousing as E. Jean Carroll testified earned him a warning he could be thrown out of court, and Habba showed she 'doesn't know what the hell she's doing'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Anders Breivik to testify in prison isolation lawsuit against Norway
Speed Read Far-right fanatic who killed 77 people in 2011 claims he has received 'inhuman treatment' in custody
By The Week UK Published
-
Former Philadelphia police officer charged with murder for Eddie Irizarry shooting
Speed Read
By Rafi Schwartz Published