Reflecting on the tumultuous last year, FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday responded to political fallout following any decision that his agency makes by saying, “Honestly, I don’t care.”
He was speaking at the Intelligence and National Security Alliance Leadership Dinner in Alexandria, Va. Comey said the past year “has been both difficult and easier than you might think.”
Comey said he was proud of the FBI’s work and stressed that individuals who claim the FBI is pursuing a political agenda are just plain wrong.
“We just don’t care. We don’t care,” Comey said, adding that sometimes situations are complicated by the agency having to choose between “bad and worse.”
Comey said he was once shown a Twitter user calling him a “political hack,” while at the same time remarking that a decision couldn’t be made on which political party he is working for. Comey said that this was the “greatest compliment.”
On any political controversy surrounding what the FBI does, Comey said that as long as the FBI makes the right decision, “Honestly, I don’t care.”
More Comey: His kid showed him a tweet that said "Comey is such a political hack" and he loved it. pic.twitter.com/j58koSancq— Steve Kopack (@SteveKopack) March 30, 2017
Comey has been a controversial figure since the midst of the 2016 campaign.
Comey elicited the ire of Democrats in late October when he reopened the investigation into Hillary Clinton emails, just days before the Nov. 8 election. The case was again closed on Nov. 6, but critics lamented that there was irreparable damage done to the Democratic candidate’s image and swayed some people who cast early votes.
Comey testified before Congress last week, during the only public hearing so far on Russian interference in which he confirmed that the FBI is investigating whether the Trump camp coordinated with the Russians during the 2016 campaign.
House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes said Tuesday he has invited Comey to testify again before House investigators, but didn’t share any details on timing.
