In a highly anticipated interview that broadcast Sunday night, former FBI Director James Comey told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos he thinks President Trump’s effort to pressure Comey to drop the investigation into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn may have constituted obstruction of justice.
George Stephanopoulos: “He says, ‘I hope you can let it go.’ What do you say?”
James Comey: “He had said, ’He’s a good guy. I hope you can let it go.’ I just said, ‘I agree he’s a good guy.’ And there was a brief pause, and then the meeting was over.”
George Stephanopoulos: “Should you have said, ‘Mr. President, I can’t discuss this with you. You’re doing something improper’?”
James Comey: “Maybe, although if he didn’t know he was doing something improper, why did he kick out the attorney general and the vice president of the United States and the leaders of the intelligence community? I mean, why am I alone, if he doesn’t know that nature of the request? But it’s possible that in the moment I should—you know, another person would have said, ‘Sir, you can’t ask me that. That’s a criminal investigation. That could be obstruction of justice.’”
George Stephanopoulos: “Was President Trump obstructing justice?”
James Comey: “Possibly. I mean, it’s certainly some evidence of obstruction of justice.”
During the interview, which comes ahead of the release of James Comey’s new book, the former FBIdirector also said President Trump was morally unfit to be president.
James Comey: “And I don’t think he’s medically unfit to be president. I think he’s morally unfit to be president. A person who sees moral equivalence in Charlottesville, who talks about and treats women like they’re pieces of meat, who lies constantly about matters big and small and insists the American people believe it, that person’s not fit to be president of the United States, on moral grounds.”
