+

Cookies on the Business Insider India website

Business Insider India has updated its Privacy and Cookie policy. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the better experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we\'ll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Insider India website. However, you can change your cookie setting at any time by clicking on our Cookie Policy at any time. You can also see our Privacy Policy.

Close
HomeQuizzoneWhatsappShare Flash Reads
 

James Comey allegedly rejected Trump's request for loyalty months before he was fired

Aug 25, 2024, 19:54 IST
Getty ImagesDonald Trump and James ComeyJames Comey, during President Donald Trump's first days in office, was asked if he would pledge loyalty to Trump, The New York Times reported on Thursday night.

Trump posed the question over a private dinner with Comey in January, The Times' Michael Schmidt wrote, at a time when the FBI was trying to determine whether the Trump campaign had colluded with Russian operatives to help him get elected.

Comey declined Trump's request for loyalty at least twice during the dinner, according to two people close to Comey who were cited by The Times and had knowledge of the conversation.

Schmidt wrote: "Instead, Mr. Comey has recounted to others, he told Mr. Trump that he would always be honest with him, but that he was not 'reliable' in the conventional political sense."

Advertisement

Trump unsuccessfully asked for Comey's loyalty again during the dinner and Comey again declined, The Times said.

Comey was fired from the FBI on Tuesday. The Trump administration has given conflicting reasons for why Comey was dismissed - until Thursday, when Trump declared he had planned to fire the FBI director all along.

Mark Wilson/ Getty Images

Trump has often bristled at the Russia investigations, which are ongoing in the House and Senate as well as the FBI - often saying the notion that Russia meddled in US affairs to tip the presidential election in his favor was a Democratic Party excuse for its own major November defeat.

Advertisement

The president has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing - at points chastising lawmakers and the US intelligence community's work on the matter.

Multiple people have been entangled in the Russia investigation, including former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who was subpoenaed by the Senate Intelligence Committeeon Wednesday.

Carter Page, once a Trump foreign-policy adviser, is also among the persons of interest, as well as former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a staunch Trump supporter, failed to disclose campaign-trail meetings he had with a Russian ambassador during his Senate confirmation hearings. Sessions has since recused himself from Russia-related investigative matters - though he appeared to have a role in Comey's removal.

NOW WATCH: 'OJ had me shook': A Georgetown professor reveals what it was like to talk to OJ Simpson after bashing him on national television

Please enable Javascript to watch this video
You are subscribed to notifications!
Looks like you've blocked notifications!
Next Article