Dismissal of FBI Director James Comey

Overview

The Dismissal of FBI Director James Comey was ordered by United States President President Donald Trump in May 2017 amid allegations that Comey had lied under oath. However, due to Comey’s ongoing investigation into Trump’s possible ties to Russia, the sudden termination of Comey created a wave of criticism and concern among Washington, the media and the public.

Background

Since May 2016, the FBI, led by former Director James Comey, had been investigating Hillary Clinton potentially criminal use of a private email server while she was Secretary of State under President Barack Obama. On July 5th, he said that he would not recommend criminal charges against her, which Republicans in Washington criticized.^[1]

While this remained an open source of outrage for the GOP throughout the 2016 Presidential Election, in late October Comey sent a letter to congressional leaders stating that they found emails regarding the Clinton investigation on the laptop of top Clinton aide Huma Abedin. The politics and poll analysis blog FiveThirtyEight^[2] later reported that the letter cost Clinton the election.

During this time, James Comey also led the investigation into Trump's potential ties to Russia. On October 7th, the Obama administration accused Russia of meddling into the Presidential election. Roughly six months later, Comey confirmed that the FBI has been investigating links between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.

On May 2nd, Hillary Clinton publicly blamed Comey for her election loss, saying "If the election had been on October 27, I would be your president.” Later that day, President Trump tweeted his outrage towards Clinton’s statements (shown below).

The next day, Comey testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding the reopening the Clinton investigation. During his testimony, he alleged that Abedin had forwarded "hundreds and thousands of emails," which may contain classified information, to her husband Anthony Weiner.

The following day, ProPublica reported that Comey had exaggerated the number of emails sent to Weiner, writing that "Abedin forwarded only a handful of Clinton emails to her husband for printing -- not the 'hundreds and thousands' cited by Comey."^[4] On May 9th, the FBI sent a letter to congress correcting Comey's statements.

Developments

On May 9th, following council and recommendations from Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Session's deputy Deputy Rod Rosenstein, President Trump fired James Comey, sending a letter to the director while he was in California. The letter from Trump (shown below)), which contained references to the ongoing Russia investigation, caused outrage and criticism.^[5][6]

While Trump cited Comey's inaccurate characterization of the Abedin email scandal, many online found the second paragraph of Trump's letter a cause for concern. It reads, "While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur the judgment of the Department of Justice that you are not able to effectively lead the Bureau." Many online saw this as reason for an independent investigation into potential Russian ties.

Trump's Response

President Trump defended his decision to dismiss Comey on Twitter. In a series of Tweets, Trump said, "Cryin' Chuck Schumer stated recently, "I do not have confidence in him (James Comey) any longer." Then acts so indignant. #draintheswamp. The Democrats have said some of the worst things about James Comey, including the fact that he should be fired, but now they play so sad! James Comey will be replaced by someone who will do a far better job, bringing back the spirit and prestige of the FBI."^[7] On May 9th, Twitter published a Moments^[8] page regarding Trump's response.

On May 11th, in an interview with NBC's Lester Holt (shown below), President Trump said he had considered the Russia investigation in his decision to fire Comey.^[23] He said, "And in fact when I decided to just do it, I said to myself, I said 'you know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made-up story, it's an excuse by the Democrats for having lost an election that they should have won'."

Trump's comments led to even more criticism of the President with many saying that Trump had the right to fire Comey, however, doing so may have been an obstruction of justice.^[24][25]

Russian Government Response

Later that day, CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer questioned Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was in skates and a full hockey pads on his way to the rink for a game. When asked about Comey's dismissal, Putin responded, “We have nothing to do with that. President Trump is acting in accordance with his competence and in accordance with his law and constitution."

Additionally, on May 10th, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was in Washington, DC on a diplomatic mission with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and when asked about Comey, Lavrov responded, "Was he fired?" After confirming that Comey was in fact terminated, he said, "You're kidding. You're kidding.^[16]

Later that day, Trump held a closed-door meeting with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak, the man who's meetings with various Trump campaign official has led to a number of controversies in the last year, including the recusal of Attorney General Sessions from the Russia investigation. The White House barred American press from the event, but the United States Russian Embassy tweeted a picture of Trump with the infamous diplomat (shown below).^[22]

Online Reaction

The response online to Comey's firing has been a mix of alarm and mockery. Redditor George_Washingtonne posted a gif of the comedic character Mr. Bean giving the middle finger under the subject line "Video of James Comey leaving FBI Headquarters after being fired" to the /r/gifs subreddit. The post (shown below) received more than 2,400 points (90% upvoted) and 70 comments.^[9]

Also on Reddit, the PoliticsModeratorBot posted a Megathread regarding the dismissal of James Comey, linking to the various conversations throughout Reddit about Comey.. The post revcevied more than 55,000 points (88% upvoted).^[10]

Anderson Cooper Eye Roll

On the evening of May 9th, CNN anchor Anderson Cooper interviewed White House Senior Council Kellyanne Conway about Comey's firing. During the interview, Cooper cut to a clip of President Trump praising Comey for his "guts" on re-opening the Clinton email investigation. Conyway responded, "Thanks for the trip down memory lane. I was on your show often last fall saying we were going to win Michigan and how we were going to do it, so that was fun." Cooper then rolled his eyes on camera (shown below).^[19]

Cooper's eye roll became something of a phenomenon on Twitter, where users posted gifs, videos, and comments about Cooper's response. The most popular came from Twitter user @chillmage,^[20] who posted a gif with the caption "this anderson cooper eyeroll at kellyanne conway is… choice." The tweet (shown below) received more than 2,700 retweets and 6,900 likes in less than 24 hours.

FBI Warning

Since the removal of James Comey, a number of people on Twitter began posting the joke "Quick, while we don't have an FBI Director, copy all of the VHS tapes you can!" along with a either a gif or a picture of the FBI warning on VHS tapes. The first to post them together was Twitter user @SarahFoxes, who received more than 58,000 retweets and 109,000 likes for her May 8th post.^[11]

New FBI Director

On Twitter, people joked about who they think should replace the FBI director. Some of the most popular (shown below) were catalogued in a Moment by Twitter.^[12]

One of the most popular responses to the director search referenced FBI agent Burt Macklin, the alter-ego of Andy Dwyer, Chris Prat's character from television sitcom Parks and Recreation. Pratt himself^[18] posted a tweet (shown below) of a compilation of Macklin's scenes with the caption "Just lemme know" and received more than 29,000 retweets and 60,000 likes. Pratt's tweet was so popular that Twitter published a Moments page about the tweet.^[17]

Nixon Library Tweet

One of the most popular responses to the firing came from the Twitter account of the Richard Nixon Library.^[15] On May 9th, the account @NixonLibrary tweeted "FUN FACT: President Nixon never fired the Director of the FBI #FBIDirector #notNixonian," which many people read as a subtweet directed at President Trump. The post received more than 34,200 retweets and 45,900 likes and was covered by such news sites as CNN,^[12] The Daily Dot,^[13] The New York Post,^[16] and more.

Senate Intelligence Committee Testimony

On June 7th, James Comey released his written testimony for the Senate Intelligence Committee.^[34] In the statement, he detailed private conversations with the President. During these conversations, President Trump said to Comey that "I need loyalty, I expect loyalty," placing Comey in a difficult and awkward position because of the independent nature of the FBI, which is traditionally an apolitical organization. In reference to the ongoing Michael Flynn investigation, Trump said, “I hope you can see your way clear to letting this go, to letting Flynn go. He is a good guy. I hope you can let this go." Many have claimed this to be the reason for Comey's firing and could therefore be read as an obstruction of justice. Finally, on the Russiagate investigation, Comey wrote:

"On the morning of March 30, the President called me at the FBI. He described the Russia investigation as 'a cloud' that was impairing his ability to act on behalf of the country. He said he had nothing to do with Russia, had not been involved with hookers in Russia, and had always assumed he was being recorded when in Russia. He asked what we could do to 'lift the cloud.' I responded that we were investigating the matter as quickly as we could, and that there would be great benefit, if we didn’t find anything, to our having done the work well. He agreed, but then re-emphasized the problems this was causing him."

The next day, June 8th, James Comey testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Comey testified so that the Committee could determine whether his firing was due to the Michael Flynn and Russia investigations and a potential obstruction of justice.

During the hearing Comey revealed many things about his nine conversations with President Trump. Among the many revelations, Comey believes that Trump asking Comey for his "loyalty," asking him to "lift the cloud" of Russia, and to drop the Flynn investigation were all interferences into active FBI investigations and challenged the autonomy of the FBI. Comey also said he was concerned the President would lie about their meetings, which is why he took notes. When Trump did comment on Twitter about Comey's firing on May 12th, and hinted at the existence of tapes (shown below). To this Comey said, "Lordy, I hope there are tapes." However, Comey said that while Trump never explicitly asked him to stop the Flynn investigation, he did take Trump's words "I hope you can see your way clear to letting this go, to letting Flynn go. He is a good guy. I hope you can let this go" as a directive. Ultimately, Comey believes he was fired because he refused to drop the Russia investigation.^[36]

The hearing became an extremely popular television event. Thousands on Twitter used the #ComeyDay Twitter user @sppeoples tweeted a picture of a packed bar in Brooklyn, NY with the caption "Dead silence here in Brooklyn bar as patrons watch Comey's testimony." The tweet (shown below) received more than 2,900 retweets and 6,800 likes in three hours.

Throughout the morning, more users posted pictures of bars filled with people watching the Comey testimony (examples below). Twitter^[28] published a Moments page, highlighting other bars packed with patrons for the Comey testimony.

That day, Twitter released data on how many people were tweeting about the testimony. Twitter Data^[30] tweeted, "3.6 million Tweets were sent 7am-1:30pm discussing Former FBI Director James Comey's testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee." The tweet (shown below, left) received more than 400 retweets and 470 likes. They followed that tweet by announcing the most Tweeted moments: 1) Senator McCain Questions Comey 2) Comey: "Lordy, I hope there are tapes" 3) Comey says "no fuzz" re: Russian interference in US election. The Tweet^[31] (shown below, right) received more than 230 reweets and 220 likes.

That day, on the subreddit /r/Politics, Redditor english06^[27] posted the thread "Discussion Megathread: James Comey Testifies before Senate Intelligence Committee," which received more than 17,000 points (92% upvoted) and 51,000 comments in fours hours. On the subreddit /r/AccidentalRenaissance, Redditor mrwrdy^[29] posted a photo (shown below) from the hearing that received more than 23,000 points (23% upvoted) and 690 comments in three hours.

John McCain's Questioning

During the hearing, many online commented on Senator John McCain's line of questioning,^[32] which seemed to point out a double standard in the investigation into the Hillary Clinton Email Controversy and President Trump (video below), but left people confused. The general consensus was that he bordered on incoherent. He said:

bq."In the case of Hillary Clinton, you made the statement that there wasn't sufficient evidence to bring a suit against her, although it had been very careless in their behavior, but you did reach a conclusion in that case that it was not necessary to further pursue her. Yet at the same time, in the case of Mr. [Trump], you said that there was not enough information to make a conclusion. Tell me the difference between your conclusion as far as former secretary Clinton is concerned, and Mr. Trump.”

Online, people watching made jokes about what McCain was saying. One tweet from Twitter user @Mikel_Jollett^[33] read "KAMALA HARRIS: Let's talk about Sessions JOHN CORNYN: Let's talk about Hillary MARCO RUBIO: Let's talk about me JOHN MCCAIN: I got bingo!" The tweet (shown below) received more than 19,000 retweets and 51,000 likes in less than 36 hours.

On Reddit, Redditor N8theGr8^[35] posted "What's going on with John McCaine suddenly?" in the /r/OutOfTheLoop subreddit. The post received more than 4,000 points (88% upvoted) and 600 comments.

Later that day, McCain^[43] commented on his questioning. He said:

"I get the sense from Twitter that my line of questioning today went over people’s heads,” McCain said in a statement issued Thursday afternoon. “Maybe going forward I shouldn’t stay up late watching the Diamondbacks night games. What I was trying to get at was whether Mr. Comey believes that any of his interactions with the President rise to the level of obstruction of justice."

The Diamondbacks responded to this in a tweet,^[44] which simply posted a screenshot of the statement and the caption "¯\(ツ)/¯." The tweet (shown below) more than 6,000 retweets and 15,000 likes.

Trump's Response

The day of the testimony, many online suspected that the president might be live-tweeting the testimony. Twitter user @Travon^[41] posted a variation of Trying to Hold a Fart Next to a Cute Girl in Class. In this tweet, the child has Trump's hair, and he captioned it "Trump trying not to tweet for the last hour." The tweet (shown below) received more than 3,000 retweets and 7,400 likes in 36 hours.

The following day, President Trump responded to Comey's testimony on Twitter. In a tweet, he said, "Despite so many false statements and lies, total and complete vindication…and WOW, Comey is a leaker!" The tweet (shown below) received more than 27,000 retweets and 90,000 likes in 12 hours.^[37]

Twitter published a Moments paged dedicated to President Trump's response, as well.^[38]

Additionally, President Trump's legal counsel said that they will file a complaint against Comey (video below). The Twitter account for NBC News PR posted that "a source close to the president's outside legal team tells NBC News Marc Kasowitz will be filing a complaint with the DOJ's Inspector General and the Senate Judiciary Committee given Comey's statements about leaking memos of his conversation with the President.

However, because Comey is a private citizen, the Department of Justice, does not have much jurisdiction on Comey, a former employee. Twitter user @rebeccagberg^[40] tweeted a screen cap of a CNN^[42] article about the complain. She said, "If they were to follow thru (Trump has bluffed before), worst possible outcome for Comey is a note on his file." The tweet (shown below) garnered more than 200 retweets and 400 likes.

Twitter also published a Moments page about Trump filing a complaint.^[38]

Memoir

ABC Interview

About two weeks before James Comey's April 15th interview with ABC News, as well as the release of his memoir, A Higher Loyalty, the Republican National Committee (RNC) launched a website called "LyinComey.com" that questions former FBI director's credibility.^[46] The site states, "While Democrats feigned outrage over President Trump’s firing of James Comey, they had long questioned Comey’s ability to lead the FBI and even called for him to be fired." The site features various prominent democratic politicians questioning Comey's conduct.

According to the bottom of the website, the site was paid for by the RNC.

On April 11th, 2018, Axios^[45] reported that during his interview with ABC News, Comey compared President Trump to a mob boss. That day, ABC News tweeted^[47] a preview for the exclusive interview in which George Stephanopoulos askes Comey, "How strange is it for you to sit here and compare the president to a mob boss?" The post (shown below) received more than 690 retweets and 1,600 likes in 24 hours.

During the interview, Comey stated that he believe President Trump does not have the moral fortitude to be fit for the presidency. He said, "A person who sees moral equivalence in Charlottesville, who talks about and treats women like they're pieces of meat, who lies constantly about matters big and small and insists the American people believe it, that person's not fit to be president of the United States, on moral ground."

Memoir Release

On April 17th, 2018, Comey's memoir A Higher Loyalty was released in the United States.

Memo Leak

On April 19th, the memo Comey claimed to have made after his meetings with Trump were released to congress by the Department of Justice.^[48] Less than one hour after the release, the memos were obtained by the Associated Press.^[49]

The leaked memos helped corroborate the claims that Comey made during his testimony, particularly in Trump's interest in the Steele Dossier, their conversations about Michael Flynn and his trips to Russia prior to the presidency.^[54] Throughout the evening, people tweeted excerpts and details from the memos.

Fox News reporter Chad Pergram tweeted,^[50] "In Comey memo sent to CapHill, Comey says he told Trump the Russians 'allegedly had tapes involving him and prostitutes' in Moscow, circa 2013. Comey says Trump replied 'there were no prostitutes; there were never prostitutes.' Says Trump presumed hotels he stayed in were 'wired.'" The tweet (shonw below, left) received more than 270 retweets and 462 likes in 24 hours.

The Daily Beast's Justin Miller tweeted^[51] an excerpt from the memos with the caption, "NEW: Priebus asked Comey, 'Do you have a FISA order on Mike Flynn?' on Feb. 8, 2017, according to Comey memo." The post (shown below, center) received more than 90 retweets and 170 comments in 24 hours. Additionally, Daily Beast reporter Andrew Desiderio tweeted (shown below, right),^[53] "In one of his memos, Comey says Trump told him, 'I need loyalty.'"

The AP tweeted,^[52] "BREAKING: Comey memo: Trump said Vladimir Putin told him, 'We have some of the most beautiful hookers in the world.'" Within 24 hours, the tweet (shown below) received more than 1,300 retweets and 14,000 likes.

That evening, Trump responded to the memos on Twitter.^[55] He wrote, "James Comey Memos just out and show clearly that there was NO COLLUSION and NO OBSTRUCTION. Also, he leaked classified information. WOW! Will the Witch Hunt continue?" The first post (shown below, left) received more than 21,000 retweets and 82,000 likes in 24 hours.

The following morning, he tweeted,^[56] "So General Michael Flynn’s life can be totally destroyed while Shadey James Comey can Leak and Lie and make lots of money from a third rate book (that should never have been written). Is that really the way life in America is supposed to work? I don’t think so!" The post (shown below, right) received more than 22,000 retweets and 76,000 likes in 24 hours.

Search Interest

External References