FBI Director Begins Briefing Congressional Leaders on Email Review

[NWCorona]

Source: ABC

FBI Director James Comey has reached out to top Republicans and Democrats in Congress to brief them on the agency's review of newly discovered emails in connection to the investigation of Hillary Clinton's private email server, congressional sources tell ABC News.

Comey spoke Saturday with House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, a Republican of Virginia, and the panel's ranking Democrat, John Conyers of Michigan.

Others leaders in Congress, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and the House Intelligence Committee's top Democrat, Adam Schiff, both of California, have requested briefings.

Read more: https://www.google.com/amp/abcnews.go.com/amp/Politics/fbi-director-james-comey-begins-briefing-congressional-leaders/story%3fid=43173237

[Farmgirl1961]

1. I wonder if he, or if top Republicans and Democrats in Congress will let the American people know

what they've learned?

[NWCorona]

8. I'm really wondering who will be talking first.

[DK504]

24. SO now Comey is pretending to do his job

We already know Chaffing my ass leaked this and NOW he is playing investigator....this is getting to be too much.

[getagrip_already]

26. It's predictable...

The Republicans will selectively leak info, Democrats will keep mostly quiet.

But if the Republicans keep the secret, there isn't anything in it for them.

[Helen Borg]

2. Something tells me....

That Comey will be a goner after Clinton becomes Prez...

[Equinox Moon]

4. Wonder how that would work? His position is for 10 years.

[PoliticAverse]

5. The President can fire the FBI director at any time. n/t

[Equinox Moon]

9. Wonder if Obama will have him step down?

[PoliticAverse]

10. That would be a nice parting gift to a President Clinton. n/t

[still_one]

23. It is also at the discretion of the President

[calimary]

29. I believe the FBI Director, and all other department heads, serve at the pleasure of the President.

The President can ask for or demand a resignation, at any time.

I certainly would. How on earth could anybody trust James Comey after this? He's proven he's a rogue agent who's only going to protect his own ass, rather than serve his President. I wouldn't want somebody like that working for me.

Hell, when I was a news director at a local station here, I actually had a rogue agent "working for me". Whom I could NOT trust because I inherited her and she'd already made it clear she wanted me out of the way so she could take my job. Trying to keep things on an even keel was HORRIBLE. It was hard to concentrate on just trying to do a good job from day to day. I soon learned there were other people in my newsroom whom I couldn't trust anymore, either, because she set about systematically trying to turn them against me. It was AWFUL!!!!!! She was willfully insubordinate, trying to undercut me with my own staff AS WELL AS trying to go over my he the program director and general manager.

The only recourse I had was to find another gig and get the hell outta there. They can't do anything to hurt you when you move out of range. Ironically, one of the young pups who'd worked with me for years before she arrived - and who I'd helped, and had treated well, but then he developed a crush on her and switched his loyalty - eventually was laid off. And By Jove he sent me a letter asking if there were any openings where I'd landed after that. I just gawked at it in disbelief and then laughed my head off. You're FUCKING KIDDING ME, dude? You think I'm gonna open my newsroom door to YOU again? After you stabbed me in the back and sided with her? After all the time we'd spent working together and the breaks I gave you and the recognition and appreciation and encouragement I gave you for some of the work you did? And I invited you into my home and included you in everything? And then you turned on me cuz you had the hots for the scheming new cutie-pie and thought you'd go farther and she'd have your back better than I did? Well, how do you like her now? She just stepped out of the way and let your severed head roll down the hall. And she didn't even fight for you or try to save your job. How'd that change of allegiance work out for ya, 'eh? Now you think I'M gonna rescue you and hire you back in? ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME????

I didn't say anything to him, or respond in any way. The letter went into the "round file." He did not get another job with me. And if I ever had one to offer again, it would NOT be to him.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

31. NO NO NO!

People in those roles do NOT serve the president, except for his direct staff.
People in those roles swear to uphold and support the US Constitution. That document, and the many US Surpreme Court decisions which have expanded and explained it, is what they are supposed to serve.

[Equinox Moon]

32. but... but... but... Comey chose not to follow agency protocol,

nor listen to the DOJ. How in the world would we expect him to comply with the Constitution?!

[ChairmanAgnostic]

37. All true, and disheartening.

[Demsrule86]

34. Comey supports the GOP ...the constitution...no.

[calimary]

35. Hmmm... that's always been my understanding, although I certainly could be wrong.

FBI director is appointed by the President, so I believe that means the appointee serves at the pleasure of the chief executive.

But in thinking about this I did get curious, honorable Chairman. My husband and I disagreed about whether Obama (or a President) could fire Comey. So I looked it up. Turns out I was correct. They get to it in Point 1.

Can FBI Director James Comey Be Fired? 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
http://heavy.com/news/2016/10/james-comey-fired-fbi-director-hillary-clinton-email-private-server-influence-election/

Point 2 is an interesting little factoid that I did not remember - the only FBI director to be fired by his President?
"But only one of those directors was ever fired by a president — William S. Sessions who had been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1987, but who was beset by allegations of ethics violations, such as disguising private vacations as law enforcement business, and using a chauffeured government limousine for personal transportation."

Point 3 is MOST intriguing and might lead to some more sleepless nights for James Comey...

“There’s a longstanding policy of not doing anything that could influence an election,” George J. Terwilliger III, who was deputy attorney general in the George Bush administration told The New York Times on Saturday. “Those guidelines exist for a reason. Sometimes, that makes for hard decisions. But bypassing them has consequences.”

“There’s a difference between being independent and flying solo,” the former Bush administration official added.

Comey also directly defied the wishes of Attorney General Loretta Lynch and her deputy, Sally Yates, who wanted the FBI director to stick to long-established tradition and keep his comments about matters that could have a bearing on the presidential election to himself, CNN reported.

The story goes on, according to CNN, that "Comey made an independent decision to alert the Hill." An unnamed current Justice Department official is quoted in the story as saying Comey is “operating independently of the Justice Department. And he knows it.”

[PearliePoo2]

6. I'm wondering if President Obama will shit-can him as a lame-duck action?

That would take the heat off of HRC to do it.

[elehhhhna]

27. Yes. Yes he can.

[Equinox Moon]

3. You know what? You can't put the Genie back in the bottle.

Now we have a lengthy news cycle about Comey's misuse of power.

[TeamPooka]

19. he took a shit in public but is apologizing for it in private. nt

[calimary]

30. What apology?

I haven't seen any such thing.

Seems like the person to whom he would really need to apologize is Hillary Clinton.

[asiliveandbreathe]

7. You know what pisses me off about this now - we the people

have privy to the word salad from comey on Friday...now we find out they met Saturday...wtf - televise it...this is BS...

[Equinox Moon]

12. Can't help my sarcasim - but he will say it is top-secret because it is within the FBI

[asiliveandbreathe]

13. LOL - thanks for that...top secret my arse....

[Equinox Moon]

15. thanks for lightening up my mood with your comment

[SunSeeker]

11. Not good enough. He needs to issue another letter explaining WTF he meant by the first letter.

And while he's at it, he should comment on any FBI investigation of Trump involvement with Russian hackers. That would level the scales Comey upended with his first letter.

[NWCorona]

14. I stand by my prediction that we will have some sort of official update by Monday afternoon

[asiliveandbreathe]

16. Yep - and it should be televised as I mentioned earlier - and

I might add..I would like him to explain the Hatch ACT to all of us, and how it doesn't apply to him - (snark, of course he won't)...or the Justice System protocol for disseminating information - Comey NEEDS to do that..he has evidently decided to make his own rules...maybe he could enlighten us as to how the eff our country is going to move forward with integrity within our justice system...

Am I pissed - don't make me go to Washington DC - it is a very long way for me..

Comey - another addition to the BASKET OF DEPLORABLES>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[Jim__]

17. He needs to make a public statement. Otherwise we just get repub said/dem said reporting.

Comey opened this can of worms. Now he has to control the damage.

[LisaL]

18. Why would you expect him to control the damage?

He is a republican.

[Jim__]

20. He has an obligation to remove the innuendo from his letter.

He knows nothing about pertinence or significance. He knows nothing about any alleged e-mails. He needs to admit that publicly. Letting democrats and republicans fight it out is not sufficient.

[anamandujano]

21. It's up to high ranking Dems and Pukes to keep pointing this stuff out, keep asking him public

questions. He won't answer but they can get the truth out by asking.

[mountain grammy]

22. So the first post I see on FB after the news broke Friday

was a woman I know in Florida, the daughter in law of one of my dearest friends who died 5 years ago. She posts, that's it for her, she can't vote for someone who can't handle classified information and will vote Trump. Now, she's a fool and, down deep, she agrees with Trump's views, but this gave her a reason to be public about it. I'm sure there are more than a few who only need one tiny reason to embrace the nazi hell. So many Americans are really dumb whiners sucked in by any huckster who tells them what they want to hear. I'm disgusted.

[spooky3]

25. People like that were going to vote for Trump

regardless. It's frustrating that there are so many of them, but at least this "scandal" probably doesn't change any real votes.

[True_Blue]

38. Probably not

but it was looking like the republican turnout would be low. I just hope this news doesn't fire them up.

[spooky3]

39. Me too. Do you think it's fired up Dems or Independents?

[True_Blue]

40. I think it has fired up the Dems

I'm not sure about the independents.

[TonyPDX]

28. He's going through the motions. That's about all we can expect these days.

The authors of our Constitution never anticipated conservatives like these.

[Demsrule86]

33. Comey can go fuck himself. He has been a terrible director even before this.

The character assassination against Hillary when he gave the news about no prosecution, Bundy's acquittal (you have to wonder if it was deliberate), the Orlando bombing and the Boston bombing etc...he had the people involved under investigation before the bombings and let them go...guess emails take precedence...for his GOP buddies. It is clear he colluded with the GOP ...he is an uber partisan, untrustworthy and at the least needs to be fired.

[Native]

36. So he's continuing to violate the Hatch Act. The man just doesn't know when to stop. Disgusting.

He knows everything he tells them will be leaked. Fuck this.

[rpannier]

41. Reached Out???

Makes it sound like he initiated conversation as opposed to trying for damage and career control