After far too much ado, President Trump finally pulled the plug on James Comey’s FBI saga in which the nation’s top law enforcement institution has suffered its worst reputation in decades.
Comey reportedly learned of his ouster while addressing FBI employees in Los Angeles when the news began flashing on the screens behind him.
Trump said he was acting on the advice of AG Jeff Sessions and Deputy AG Rod Borenstein who both determined it’s time for a “fresh start”.
Comey has been in the most unenviable position of possibly being the only political figure in modern times hated by both sides of the spectrum.
Here’s more from Breitbart…
President Donald Trump fired FBI Director James Comey on Tuesday, according to a statement from the White House.
In a statement from the press office, the White House said Trump acted on the recommendation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Borenstein.
“The FBI is one of our Nation’s most cherished and respected institutions and today will mark a new beginning for our crown jewel of law enforcement,” Trump said in a statement announcing Comey’s termination.
In a letter to the president Tuesday, Sessions wrote that after an evaluation, he had concluded that “a fresh start is needed at the leadership of the FBI.”
“It is essential that this Department of Justice clearly reaffirm its commitment to longstanding principles that ensure the integrity and fairness of federal investigations and prosecutions,” Sessions wrote. “The Director of the FBI must be someone who follows faithfully the rules and principles of the Department of Justice and who sets the right example for our law enforcement officials and others in the Department.”
In his own memorandum to the Attorney General Tuesday, Borenstein said the reputation and credibility of the FBI had “suffered substantial damage” in the last year. The deputy attorney general cited Comey’s handling of the investigation into former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s private email server as a “textbook example of what federal prosecutors and agents are taught not to do.”
The president also sent a letter to Comey Tuesday informing him he had been terminated effective immediately.
“While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur with the judgement of the Department of Justice that you are not able to effectively lead the Bureau,” Trump wrote. “It is essential that we find new leadership for the FBI that restores public trust and confidence in its vital law enforcement mission.”
