White House spokeswoman claims Trump has been 'considering' letting Comey go 'since the day he was elected'

White House Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced the day after President Trump fired FBI Director James Comey that Trump had "been considering letting Director Comey go since the day he was elected." "It's been an erosion of confidence," Sanders said in Wednesday's daily press briefing. "I think that Director Comey has shown over the last several months and, frankly, the last year, a lot of missteps and mistakes."

However, Trump and White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer's public comments appeared to tell a different story. Just days ago, on May 3, Spicer said that "the president has confidence in the director." When asked last month in an interview whether it was a mistake not to ask Comey to step down at the start of his presidency, Trump insisted he had "confidence" in Comey. Becca Stanek

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

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.

Sign up