Email us for help
Loading...
Premium support
Log Out
Our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy have changed. We think you'll like them better this way.
April 11, 2017: In an interview with Fox News, Trump says "it's not too late" for him to fire Comey, but that he has confidence in him. Trump goes on to criticize Comey for clearing Hillary Clinton.
May 2, 2017: Trump attacks Comey on Twitter, saying he gave Clinton a "free pass." Trump also says that the Russia story is "phony" and an excuse used by the Democrats to justify their election loss.
May 8, 2017: Trump meets with Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who recused himself from the Russia investigation, and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. They discuss firing Comey.
May 9, 2017: After receiving a recommendation from Rosenstein, Sessions sends a letter to Trump recommending that he dismiss Comey. Later that day, Trump fires Comey. In his letter of dismissal, Trump says he was acting on the recommendation of Sessions and Rosenstein, whose decision was based on Comey's mishandling of the Clinton email investigation in 2016. Trump also says, "I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation."
May 9-10, 2017: In interviews, top White House officials including Mike Pence, Kellyanne Conway, Sean Spicer, and Sarah Sanders, insist that Trump only decided to fire Comey after receiving Rosenstein's recommendation and that Comey's firing had nothing to do with the Russia investigation.
May 10, 2017: During an Oval Office meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, Trump says Comey was "crazy" and "a real nutjob." He also tells them, "I faced great pressure because of Russia. That's taken off," according to The New York Times.
