Associated Press/Manuel Balce Ceneta
Former FBI Director James Comey speaks to reporters after testifying under subpoena behind closed doors before the House Judiciary and Oversight Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Dec. 7, 2018.
Former FBI Director James Comey said during his testimony before lawmakers that he and the special counsel Robert Mueller are "not friends in any social sense."
- The testimony occurred in a closed-door setting, but lawmakers released a redacted transcript of the proceedings on Saturday.
President Donald Trump often accuses the pair of being "best friends," and once even said that there are 100 pictures of Comey and Mueller "hugging and kissing each other."
During Friday's testimony, one lawmaker said he wouldn't ask Comey about Trump's "hugging and kissing" remark, to which Comey joked it would be "a relief to my wife."
Former FBI Director James Comey told House lawmakers on Friday that he and the special counsel Robert Mueller do not socialize, contradicting President Donald Trump's repeated claims that the pair are "best friends."
Comey's testimony before the House Judiciary Committee and House Oversight and Government Reform Committee occurred behind closed doors. A redacted transcript of the proceedings was released by the committee leaders on Saturday.
President Donald Trump has tweeted multiple times - the latest instance being on Friday - that Comey and Mueller are "best friends," accusing them of teaming up on the Russia investigation.
"Robert Mueller and Leakin' Lyin' James Comey are Best Friends, just one of many Mueller Conflicts of Interest," Trump tweeted.
Read more: Everything Michael Cohen told Mueller about the Trump campaign's contacts with Russia
Win McNamee/Getty
James Comey testifies in Washington DC in 2016.
During Comey's testimony, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, a New York Democrat, asked about Trump's accusations. He cited a recent interview Trump gave to The Daily Caller, in which he accused Comey and Mueller of being "best friends" and said there were 100 pictures of the pair "hugging and kissing each other." The FBI later said it had no records of such images.
"Are you best friends with Robert Mueller?" Nadler asked.
"I am not," Comey responded. "I admire the heck out of the man, but I don't know his phone number, I've never been to his house, I don't know his children's names."
He continued: "I think I had a meal once alone with him in a restaurant. I like him. I am not a - I'm an associate of his who admires him greatly. We're not friends in any social sense."
When Nadler followed up by saying he wouldn't ask if Comey had hugged or kissed Mueller, Comey joked that it was "a relief to my wife."