Key Takeaways From James Comey’s Testimony Before Congress

On Saturday, Congress released over 230 pages of transcript from closed-door testimony with ex-FBI Director James Comey. In the testimony, James Comey gave his account of what he knew and more often, what he did not know about the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s email practices and Trump-Russia connections. Here is a less than three-minute summary. Comey confirmed that Strzok and Lisa Page served in both investigations, and that he would not have allowed them to serve on the Hillary email investigation if he had seen evidence suggesting their bias toward Hillary. Regarding the tarmac meeting between Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former President Bill Clinton five days before Hillary Clinton’s FBI interview, he acknowledged that he didn’t take steps to find out the content of the conversation, despite thinking it was problematic, and that Lynch should have recused herself from the Clinton investigation. Comey seems to have very little knowledge of the details of Hillary Clinton’s FBI Interview. He said he doesn’t know who drafted the questions for Clinton, that he didn’t read them, and that he doesn’t know if the questions were shared with her attorney. Moreover, Comey said he doesn’t remember why Clinton’s interview wasn’t conducted before a grand jury or why her attorneys were allowed to sit in during her FBI interview, which he said to be “very unusual.” Regarding the investigation into Russian interference during the election, Comey said that “at least some” of the Americans who were investigated by the FBI were affiliated with the Trump campaign but insists the probe was not into Trump or the Trump campaign. Again, Comey seems to know very little about how the investigation began, saying he doesn’t think he ever read the FBI document launching the probe and doesn’t remember the FBI’s stated “predicate” for it. Despite that Trump reportedly told Comey to “let it go” regarding the FBI’s investigation into National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, Comey said that he doesn’t think he opened an obstruction of justice investigation, and that Trump’s order had no impact. Comey said he decided to keep the information on the Trump “directive” on a “close hold.” Comey says he never met Christopher Steele, who is the author of the anti-Trump opposition research “dossier” that the FBI presented to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court to obtain wiretaps on Trump associate Carter Page. Comey denied knowing Steele worked for a political opposition research firm hired by a law firm paid by the Democratic National Committee. Despite personally signing off the wiretap application, Comey said he doesn’t know the details of the application, including if or how the dossier was verified, even though this is a crucial requirement for FISA warrants. Comey says he thinks Trump fired him because of the FBI’s Russia investigation. He doesn’t know if Trump firing him constitutes obstruction of justice, and he doesn’t remember if he talked to McCabe the day of his firing.