Comey Memos Don’t Support Former Director’s Obstruction of Justice Claim

FBI Director James Comey testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 3, 2017, before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing: “Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.” (AP Photo)

The chairmen of three House committees said the newly obtained Comey memos “would be Defense Exhibit A” if President Donald Trump was charged with obstruction of justice. Fired former FBI Director James Comey allegedly wrote memos detailing his conversations with President Trump.

The memos were obtained only after House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., threatened to subpoena the Justice Department (DOJ) if they did not comply with the request.

Chairman Goodlatte, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) Chair Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and House Oversight Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., released a joint statement after the memos were made public.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (right) talks with Rep. Trey Gowdy during a House Judiciary Committee hearing, November 14, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

“We have long argued former Director Comey’s self-styled memos should be in the public domain, subject to any classification redactions,” the three chairman said in a joint statement. “These memos are significant for both what is in them and what is not.”

Mr. Comey subsequently leaked those memos after he was fired to his friend and Columbia Law professor with the explicit purpose of triggering a special counsel, a move experts said exposed him to potential legal ramifications without making the case for obstruction.

Liberal law professor Jonathan Turley said the testimony in the Comey hearing “actually helped Trump and his legal case,” adding that even if we accept his version of events he “did not describe a crime or an impeachable offense.”

Worth noting, that special counsel was none other than his friend and mentor Robert Mueller.

“Comey never wrote that he felt obstructed or threatened,” the three chairman added. “The memos also made clear the ‘cloud’ President Trump wanted lifted was not the Russian interference in the 2016 election cloud, rather it was the salacious, unsubstantiated allegations related to personal conduct leveled in the dossier.”

Mr. Comey not only wrote that President Trump told him there was no collusion with the Russians, but also that he was eager for him to investigate. If he found wrongdoing by someone in his orbit, the president said they should be held accountable.

President Trump reacted to the content of the memos on Twitter, stating they “show clearly that there was NO COLLUSION and NO OBSTRUCTION.”

“James Comey Memos just out show clearly that there was NO COLLUSION and NO OBSTRUCTION,” President Trump tweeted. “Also, he leaked classified information. WOW! Will the Witch Hunt continue?”

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?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 20, 2018

He then went on to tweet that “General Michael Flynn’s life can be totally destroyed” while “Shadey James Comey” leaked and lied for personal profit. The FBI initially cleared General Flynn and determined he did not “willfully and knowingly mislead” investigators. But Mr. Mueller overruled that determination and charged him anyway.

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!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 20, 2018

Meanwhile, Mr. Rosenstein, who has done everything possible to prevent Congress from obtaining documents that proved damaging to DOJ, told President Trump last Friday that the raid on his personal attorney Michael Cohen was not aimed at him. But his actions indicate the White House should not yet feel comfortable.

It was only when he was facing impeachment was Mr. Rosenstein forced to allow Chairman Nunes to view the memo that served as the genesis of the Russia probe.

House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) Chairman Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and Ranking Member Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., speak with the media about the ongoing investigation on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., March 15, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

The man behind the memo was none other than Peter Strzok, the corrupt FBI counterintelligence agent who, along with his extra-marital lover Lisa Page, played a key role in the sham investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server.

Mr. Mueller hired both Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page to serve on his team characterized as an “ethically-challenged Democratic hit squad” before he fired them last summer in an attempt to avoid media criticism.

Meanwhile, Mr. Rosenstein also tried to hide the fact former Obama Administration officials at DOJ and the FBI used unverified opposition research, which was bought and paid for by Democrats, as the basis to spy on Team Trump.