WASHINGTON: Fired former FBI chief James Comey lashed out at Donald Trump in an interview with ABC broadcast on Sunday, calling him “morally unfit” to be president and describing him as a serial liar who will “stain everyone around him.”
Comey’s remarks are the latest salvo in a war of words with Trump, who excoriated the former FBI director on Twitter earlier in the day, again calling him a “slimeball” and suggesting he should be jailed.
The wide-ranging interview with ABC News also came ahead of Tuesday’s release of Comey’s memoir, “A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies and Leadership,” in which he details his interactions with the Republican president.
“I think he’s morally unfit to be president,” Comey said, in his first televised interview since being fired in May last year.
The former federal prosecutor pointed to how Trump “talks about and treats women like they’re pieces of meat” and “lies constantly about matters big and small and insists the American people believe it.”
“Values matter,” Comey said. “This president does not reflect the values of this country.”
Comey also said that serving in Trump’s administration poses a serious ethical dilemma.
“The challenge of this president is that he will stain everyone around him,” he told ABC, which aired an edited version of the interview but published a full transcript.
“And the question is, how much stain is too much stain and how much stain eventually makes you unable to accomplish your goal of protecting the country and serving the country?”
But while Comey sharply criticised Trump, he said he hopes the president is not impeached.
“I hope not because I think impeaching and removing Donald Trump from office would let the American people off the hook and have something happen indirectly that I believe they’re duty bound to do directly.” In his book, Comey likens Trump to a dishonest, ego-driven mob boss and says he demanded the then FBI chief’s personal pledge of loyalty — a damning account that has infuriated the president at a moment of intensifying legal pressure on other fronts.
“I never asked Comey for Personal Loyalty. I hardly even knew this guy. Just another of his many lies. His ‘memos’ are self serving and FAKE!” Trump said in one of a series of tweets fired off on Sunday before the interview.
The president said Comey “stupidly” handled a probe into Trump’s 2016 election rival Hillary Clinton and how she used a private email server during her time as secretary of state.
In another tweet, Trump offered a mini-review of Comey’s memoir.
“The big questions in Comey’s badly reviewed book aren’t answered like, how come he gave up Classified Information (jail), why did he lie to Congress (jail), why did the DNC refuse to give Server to the FBI (why didn’t they TAKE it), why the phony memos, McCabe’s $700,000 & more?”
The jumble of references appeared to allude to unsubstantiated accusations Trump has previously made claiming Comey lied in Senate testimony last May in denying he had served as an anonymous news source.
“Look, it’s been very clear that James Comey is a self-admitted leaker. He lied to Congress,” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said on Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.”
In the interview, Comey said he was unsure whether or not the Russians have compromising material that could be used to blackmail Trump — either relating to his pre-election personal conduct, or his campaign’s actions.
“I think it’s possible. I don’t know. These are more words I never thought I’d utter about a president of the United States, but it’s possible,” he said.
Comey committed ‘many crimes’: Trump fired back on Monday at James Comey, saying he is guilty of “many crimes,” as the former FBI director opened a book tour with an interview.
Trump accused Comey of lying to Congress and exonerating Hillary Clinton in a 2016 investigation because of her strong poll numbers in the presidential race.
“Comey drafted the Crooked Hillary exoneration long before he talked to her (lied in Congress to Senator G),” Trump fired in an early morning tweet.
“Then based his decisions on her poll numbers. Disgruntled, he, [former FBI deputy director Andrew] McCabe, and the others, committed many crimes!” — AFP
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