FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday rejected accusations from Democrats that he helped President Trump get elected by revealing information about an investigaiton into Hillary Clinton’s emails, but staying silent on its possible probe into Trump’s alleged collusion with Russia.
Sen. Pat Leahy, D-Vt., asked Comey during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing if it was “appropriate” for Comey to make public comments about the Clinton investigation, and “not say anything” about Trump. Comey insisted he was being consistent.
“I think I treated both investigations consistently under the same principals,” Comey replied. “People forget we would not confirm the existence of the Hillary Clinton email investigation until three months after it began, even though it began with a public referral and the candidate herself talked about it.”
“In October of 2015, we confirmed it existed, and then said not another word, not a peep about it until we were finished,” he added.
Because the investigation into Trump’s connection with Russia started much later, Comey was not in a position to confirm that until well after the election, and was only able to confirm that weeks ago, in March.
