A Donald Trump tweet is the reason we have a special counsel investigation into Russia’s attempts to influence the 2016 election and possible collusion between Trump associates and Russians, according to testimony from former FBI Director James Comey.
Comey testified Thursday that he shared with a friend a memo Comey had written about a conversation he’d had with Trump so that the friend could share the memo with a reporter–all for the purpose of triggering a special counsel investigation. And Comey did this, he testified, because he had read a tweet from Trump indicating that the president that he may have taped their conversations. This tweet, to be precise:
James Comey better hope that there are no “tapes” of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 12, 2017
Comey testified Thursday: “The president tweeted on Friday after I got fired that I better hope there’s not tapes. I woke up in the middle of the night on Monday night because it didn’t dawn on me originally, that there might be corroboration for our conversation. There might a tape. My judgment was: I need to get that out into the public square. I asked a friend of mine to share the content of the memo with a reporter – didn’t do it myself for a variety of reasons. I asked him to because I thought that might prompt the appointment of a special counsel.”
Senior White House officials have repeatedly tried to get President Trump to stop tweeting. Trump supporters in the media and many Republican elected officials have repeated these exhortations to no effect.
Trump has repeatedly defended his tweeting as president and earlier this week credited his ability to work around the establishment media as the reason he is president.
The FAKE MSM is working so hard trying to get me not to use Social Media. They hate that I can get the honest and unfiltered message out.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 6, 2017
Sorry folks, but if I would have relied on the Fake News of CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS, washpost or nytimes, I would have had ZERO chance winning WH
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 6, 2017
He’s wrong about the first–the media love Trump’s tweets. But he may be right that his ability to communicate without a filter was a political advantage and may have helped him get elected.
But there is no doubt that his tweeting as president has done extraordinary damage to his presidency–including, but not limited to, directly leading to the naming of a special counsel.
The prospect of their conversations having been taped “never occurred to me until the president’s tweet,” Comey testified later. “I’m not being facetious. I hope there are and I’ll consent to their release.”
