After Comey threat, Trump tweets he has no tapes of conversations
Jun 22, 2017, 10:16 AM | Updated: 1:27 pm
President Donald Trump speaks during a rally, Wednesday, June 21, 2017, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
(AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
PHOENIX — Weeks after threatening former FBI Director James Comey with supposed taped conversations, President Donald Trump has tweeted those tapes do not exist.
He made the confession in two parts Thursday on the popular social media site.
…whether there are "tapes" or recordings of my conversations with James Comey, but I did not make, and do not have, any such recordings.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 22, 2017
Trump tweeted about possibly possessing tapes of conversations between he and Comey days after Trump fired his FBI director. The tweet seemed to imply that the tapes may contain some sort of information Comey would not want the public to hear.
James Comey better hope that there are no "tapes" of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 12, 2017
The White House had said the tweet was not intended as a threat.
However, Trump had remained mum about the possible tapes until his Thursday tweets.
For his part, Comey seemed to welcome the release of possible recordings of his conversation with the president.
During his testimony earlier this month about discussions he had with Trump in the Oval Office, Comey said, “I’ve seen the tweet about tapes. Lordy, I hope there are tapes.”
Comey made the comment when responding to a line of questions asked by Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.), who inquired about a Feb. 14 meeting in the Oval Office.
According to written testimony, Trump wanted to talk privately about the investigation into then-National Security Advisor Michael Flynn and his ties with Russia.
“I know the Oval Office and I know what happens to people when they walk in,” Feinstein said. “There is a certain amount of intimidation, but why didn’t you stop and say, ‘Mr. President, this is wrong. I cannot discuss this with you?’”
Comey responded that he was taken aback by the conversation and what he perceived as a request to halt his agency’s investigation into Flynn, someone Trump had called “a good guy.”
“I remember saying, ‘I agree he’s a good guy,’ as a way of saying I’m not agreeing with what you asked me to do,” he said.
“Maybe other people would be stronger in that circumstance but that’s how I conducted myself,” he continued. “I hope I’ll never have another opportunity. Maybe if I did, I would do it better.”
