White House deputy press secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters Thursday that President Trump did not misrepresent the circumstances surrounding his encounters with former FBI Director James Comey, speaking shortly after Comey testified that the White House had “defamed” him in the wake of his termination.
“The president is not a liar,” Sanders said during a gaggle at the White House, which she conducted as Comey’s testimony continued on Capitol Hill. “I think it’s frankly insulting that that question would be asked.”
Sanders said the president had spent his morning with staff, including national security adviser H.R. McMaster, and did not specify whether Trump had watched the hearing.
“In terms of the mood in the White House, I would say that it’s a regular Thursday at the White House,” Sanders said. “Again, the president is engaged in national security meetings, doing infrastructure meetings this afternoon.”
Sanders declined to answer most questions about Comey’s characterization of private conversations with Trump, instead referring all inquiries to Marc Kasowitz, Trump’s outside counsel.
“Whether or not he addresses that, I don’t know,” she said when asked whether Trump planned to comment on the Comey hearing during a speech scheduled for later Thursday.
