Trump Told Russians That Firing 'Nut Job' Comey Eased Pressure From Investigation
Source: New York Times
WASHINGTON President Trump told Russian officials in the Oval Office this month that firing the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, had relieved great pressure on him, according to a document summarizing the meeting.
"I just fired the head of the F.B.I. He was crazy, a real nut job", Mr. Trump said, according to the document, which was read to The New York Times by an American official. "I faced great pressure because of Russia. Thats taken off". Mr. Trump added, "I'm not under investigation."
The conversation, during a May 10 meeting the day after he fired Mr. Comey reinforces the notion that Mr. Trump dismissed him primarily because of the bureaus investigation into possible collusion between his campaign and Russian operatives. Mr. Trump said as much in one televised interview, but the White House has offered changing justifications for the firing.
The White House document that contained Mr. Trumps comments was based on notes taken from inside the Oval Office and has been circulated as the official account of the meeting. One official read quotations to The Times, and a second official confirmed the broad outlines of the discussion.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/us/politics/trump-russia-comey.html
BeyondGeography
(39,377 posts)What a maroon.
BootinUp
(47,179 posts)countryjake
(8,554 posts)sprinkleeninow
(20,254 posts)countryjake
(8,554 posts)And no self respecting Merchant Marine would ever hitch a hawser to a vessel with that sort of infectious crew.
sprinkleeninow
(20,254 posts)😆
lsewpershad
(2,620 posts)Don't return.
notdarkyet
(2,226 posts)And strategies. To warn Putin? To seek his advise. This is very dysfunctional and unhealthy for our nation.
tblue37
(65,483 posts)Putin would hear of it, too, of course, from his guys, but Trump didn't directly call Putin to say these things.
leftynyc
(26,060 posts)of donnie's closest advisors, the russians and the russian press in the oval office. Who's the leaker? Is putin putting donnie's nuts in a vice?
countryjake
(8,554 posts)From that NY Times piece:
"The White House document that contained Mr. Trumps comments was based on notes taken from inside the Oval Office and has been circulated as the official account of the meeting. One official read quotations to The Times, and a second official confirmed the broad outlines of the discussion."
It doesn't sound like any surreptitious leaking was involved, to me. It's unclear, though, from that article. Spicer was contacted and apparently verified that the official "notes" were accurate.
Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, did not dispute the account.
In a statement, he said that Mr. Comey had put unnecessary pressure on the presidents ability to conduct diplomacy with Russia on matters such as Syria, Ukraine and the Islamic State.
By grandstanding and politicizing the investigation into Russias actions, James Comey created unnecessary pressure on our ability to engage and negotiate with Russia, Mr. Spicer said. The investigation would have always continued, and obviously, the termination of Comey would not have ended it. Once again, the real story is that our national security has been undermined by the leaking of private and highly classified conversations.
sprinkleeninow
(20,254 posts)Missing brain cells to rub together in order to access their funk n wagnalls. How original--grandstanding and showboating.
Shut the HELLUP!!
What's going on w/me today.
I'm seething.
Sugar Smack
(18,748 posts)Thanks for articulating my thoughts so well.
sprinkleeninow
(20,254 posts)I joined DU under another screen name when the mad cowboy got selected to occupy the Peoples' House, then had peace of mind when Barack became our CiC and curtailed my activity. Had medical emergencies with my mom and that took over anyway.
I joined again recently with a new name. Didn't want a feeling of isolation. There is a wealth of info. and camaraderie so to speak on here.
Cheers, sprink
niyad
(113,527 posts)Volaris
(10,274 posts)Yes, I would have to agree that the FBI Russia investigations would put pressure on those 'negotiations'.
Good thing that's all taken care of now that the nutjob is fired. . .
The American President honestly thinks he can lie to Russian mob interests as easily as he lies to his own constituents, and that there just won't be any consequences for this. I have a feeling that no matter what else happens, he's going to find out how wrong he is.
countryjake
(8,554 posts)I've thought for a long time now, whenever I see people wondering what exactly it might be that Putin has on Trump...it is most likely simply his knowledge of the fates of so many others who learned the hard way what can happen when dealings with Russia go sour.
Fear.
Alexander Litvinenko, Viktor Yushchenko, Yuri Shchekochikhin... and the list goes on and on.
Amaryllis
(9,525 posts)identified at the leaker since there were so few people it could have been? ANd is T really so stupid that if he knew someone was taking notes he would still say all that stuff?
countryjake
(8,554 posts)Bwahahahahaha! Are you asking that question about the same man who is on record as publicly tweeting literally hundreds of inane statements, buffoonish retorts that, if any Democratic leader had ever made such damaging declarations, drastic legal proceedings would have begun immediately?!
As far as I know, it hasn't yet been revealed who the note taker could have been. But the way that NYTimes article reads, the person who wrote down those notes isn't necessarily the same person who read Trump's quotes to Matt Apuzzo, Maggie Haberman, or Matthew Rosenberg.
It just says the White House document was circulated as the official account of the meeting.
kytngirl
(99 posts)I don't care who took the notes. Spicer didn't deny it was said. He spun some BS about needing to reassure Russia blah, blah, blah. Therefore the leaker spoke to the truth. We'll probably find out that Spicer has been "Deep Throat" all along. Trumps makes him go out there to tell a bunch of lies and then he (Trump) comes along a day or so later and says something completely different. Yeah, if I was Spicer I'd leak every tidbit I heard because the idiot doesn't deserve loyalty!
madaboutharry
(40,218 posts)Maybe Kushner and Ivanka should put duck tape over his mouth before they let him off the plane when it lands in Saudi Arabia and he has the opportunity to start blabbing.
Ilsa
(61,697 posts)dalton99a
(81,568 posts)Grammy23
(5,810 posts)maddiemom
(5,106 posts)They seem pretty quiet.
sheshe2
(83,860 posts)Kleveland
(1,257 posts)Who is that wacko calling a nut job?
Talk about psychological projection...
Holy crap... I am verklempt!
sprinkleeninow
(20,254 posts)Heavenlies, you do hear this, DON'T YOU??!!
wiggs
(7,817 posts)the media please. This is not going to endear him with the FBI or with normal gop congresspersons.
barbtries
(28,810 posts)he should be toast. Mueller an anxious nation looks to you.
hamsterjill
(15,223 posts)I should stop laughing. But I don't intend to do that.
brooklynite
(94,703 posts)geek tragedy
(68,868 posts)moonscape
(4,673 posts)LiberalLoner
(9,762 posts)Great timing!
BumRushDaShow
(129,376 posts)and are probably ready for the am tweet storm!
dalton99a
(81,568 posts)Grammy23
(5,810 posts)A nice little tweak in the nuts...so he won't forget what's waiting on him when he gets back.....IF he comes back. I think he is gonna bail. Just go beg Putin to let him take up residence.
dchill
(38,518 posts)Put him to work as a tea taster?
sprinkleeninow
(20,254 posts)as waitstaff in a Russian tea room. 😋😆
Xipe Totec
(43,890 posts)nolabear
(41,991 posts)They are the hope of the nation right now.
In other news, that man is like the kid in the family who wants so badly to impress the bullies he lets them in to rob the house.
countryjake
(8,554 posts)right above the piece I'd been reading, then, when I checked on the tab I had open to a Wash Post article...BREAKING NEWS!
It's dueling banjos, I tell ya! Loving every single minute of it. The Hope of the Nation!
irisblue
(33,019 posts)MFM008
(19,818 posts)SunSeeker
(51,659 posts)He thinks that impresses the Russians. Of course, Putin would not be impressed. Putin would have given Comey some lethal "tea," not stupid Twitter threats. Comey is still alive and will testify.
Bleacher Creature
(11,257 posts)TNLib
(1,819 posts)Is he really that detached from reality? or was he trying to con the Russians too?
montanto
(2,966 posts)JHan
(10,173 posts)herding cats
(19,566 posts)By mid flight they'll be fighting over the parachutes.
Blue Idaho
(5,054 posts)And ask for asylum?
furtheradu
(1,865 posts)DA! it didn't "take the pressure off"..but thanks for confessing to Obstruction of JUSTICE! trump, you ain't seeen PRESSURE yet! YiiiHaaaa!
DumA$$!
maddiemom
(5,106 posts)absolutely NOTHING about anyone else's sanity.
Marie Marie
(9,999 posts)Wink Wink - "Now we can go back to all our dirty deeds without interference". Just letting them know where his loyalties lie. This man is a Traitor.
brooklynite
(94,703 posts)Dark n Stormy Knight
(9,771 posts)The lies are so blatant it's insulting.
paleotn
(17,946 posts)twit!
forgotmylogin
(7,530 posts)That's going to be the mantra he babbles over and over rocking in a straitjacket on the floor of a padded cell if this keeps up.
onetexan
(13,056 posts)one gop nutjob calling another gop nutjob
TomCADem
(17,390 posts)...no wonder the White House has not accepted Russia's offer of the transcripts.
JuJuYoshida
(2,216 posts)Yup and the White House is not saying that didn't happen (because there is probably a recording of it).
They're saying he was "joking".
Da.
Ryan was also "joking" about "no leaks", right? It's all smiles at the GOP these days.
In other news, Kushner is going down now.
George II
(67,782 posts)BadGimp
(4,017 posts)deurbano
(2,895 posts)"wholly appropriate," too? A lot of reputations going down with this ship... (The ones that weren't underwater to start with.)
wishstar
(5,271 posts)At time he told Russians, WH was trying to claim Rosenstein had recommended the firing based on the memo.
Outrageous that he would insult our top law enforcement official in that way to Russians.
BumRushDaShow
(129,376 posts)He flips around like an exaggerating caricature of a big shot.
Raven123
(4,862 posts)The VP is probably salivating over possibilities.
ginnyinWI
(17,276 posts)Donnie is a little, lost, unloved boy who always wanted his daddy's approval and didn't get it. He now sees Putin (and maybe all those other autocrats) as his daddy who can finally give approval. So he chums up with the Russians and acts like he's one of them, the elites, and speaks down against his FBI director, who he sees as one of the "help". "See, boys, I can handle this annoying problem!" Always looking for approval and acceptance. Those pictures perfectly captured that.
Never mind that in reality it isn't his daddy, it is the Russians, our adversaries (yeah the same ones bombing Syria to smithereens).
L. Coyote
(51,129 posts)ProudProgressiveNow
(6,129 posts)pansypoo53219
(20,987 posts)too much time spent among other rich odd idiots.