Trump Fires FBI Director Comey

[Gusington]

Comey was at the head of a vast machine. The machine will have to be stopped and recalibrated, if it is restarted at all. At the very, very least, this just looks terrible as far as outward appearances.

[mirth]

Comey was at the head of a vast machine. The machine will have to be stopped and recalibrated, if it is restarted at all. At the very, very least, this just looks terrible as far as outward appearances.

I think it was a stupid move by Trump. The optics look terrible and if there really is something to the Russia stuff, something criminal, firing Comey isn't going to stop that from coming to light.

[smittyohio]

Comey was at the head of a vast machine. The machine will have to be stopped and recalibrated, if it is restarted at all. At the very, very least, this just looks terrible as far as outward appearances.

I think it was a stupid move by Trump. The optics look terrible and if there really is something to the Russia stuff, something criminal, firing Comey isn't going to stop that from coming to light.

I can't imagine he'll appoint someone who will not try to minimize or entirely stop the investigation.   At the very least, that's going to be the public perception.

[mirth]

Comey was at the head of a vast machine. The machine will have to be stopped and recalibrated, if it is restarted at all. At the very, very least, this just looks terrible as far as outward appearances.

I think it was a stupid move by Trump. The optics look terrible and if there really is something to the Russia stuff, something criminal, firing Comey isn't going to stop that from coming to light.

I can't imagine he'll appoint someone who will not try to minimize or entirely stop the investigation.   At the very least, that's going to be the public perception.

If that's how he plays it, there'll be an independent investigator appointed. That may happen now anyway

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/09/us/politics/trump-comey-fbi-senators.html

Firing Comey isn't going to end the Russia investigation. In fact, it may just make things worse for Trump because Republicans will look to distance themselves from him.

[Steelgrave]

When word leaked out that Comey was fired, I Googled something like "FBI Director fired" and the first story that popped up was an editorial laying out reasons why the President should fire Comey. It was a compelling read....but the punch line is it was written before the election and the article was supporting why President Hillary should fire Comey. Notably a lot of the reasons presented were the same as the White House used yesterday. Personally I feel his actions during the election process warranted his termination by either President, but with the Russian election interference issue not yet settled, Trump should have held his nose and kept Comey for now. I really feel Comey being fired is justifiable, but politically it's a terrible move.

[DoctorQuest]

When word leaked out that Comey was fired, I Googled something like "FBI Director fired" and the first story that popped up was an editorial laying out reasons why the President should fire Comey. It was a compelling read....but the punch line is it was written before the election and the article was supporting why President Hillary should fire Comey. Personally I feel his actions during the election process warranted his termination by either President, but with the Russian election interference issue not yet settled, Trump should have held his nose and kept Comey for now. I really feel Comey being fired is justifiable, but politically it's a terrible move.

Agreed. Well said.

[bbmike]

At this point I think we do need an independent investigator. But good luck finding one.

[DoctorQuest]

At this point I think we do need an independent investigator. But good luck finding one.

+1

[Steelgrave]

At this point I think we do need an independent investigator. But good luck finding one.

+2  Way too much smoke here, we need to know if there is a fire burning. And if there is, Trump may have just thrown gasoline on it.

[mirth]

At this point I think we do need an independent investigator. But good luck finding one.

+2  Way too much smoke here, we need to know if there is a fire burning. And if there is, Trump may have just thrown gasoline on it.

It's going to happen now. Firing Comey backed Congressional Republicans into a corner. They have little choice now but to support an independent investigator. Trump may not care about how the Comey firing looks, but it matters to the Repubs.

[Steelgrave]

At this point I think we do need an independent investigator. But good luck finding one.

+2  Way too much smoke here, we need to know if there is a fire burning. And if there is, Trump may have just thrown gasoline on it.

It's going to happen now. Firing Comey backed Congressional Republicans into a corner. They have little choice now but to support an independent investigator. Trump may not care about how the Comey firing looks, but it matters to the Repubs.

I think you've hit the nail on the head here, Mirth. Couldn't agree with you more.

[smittyohio]

At this point I think we do need an independent investigator. But good luck finding one.

+2  Way too much smoke here, we need to know if there is a fire burning. And if there is, Trump may have just thrown gasoline on it.

It's going to happen now. Firing Comey backed Congressional Republicans into a corner. They have little choice now but to support an independent investigator. Trump may not care about how the Comey firing looks, but it matters to the Repubs.

I think you've hit the nail on the head here, Mirth. Couldn't agree with you more.

I wish I could believe this, but the partisanship in Congress right now (both sides) doesn't encourage me.   I fear they'll line up, shake their fists, bemoan how bad this looks, and they say "oh well, it was within his legal right".

I mean, do we really think the roles wouldn't be 100% reversed had Obama fired Comey last summer?

[mirth]

We'll see, but I don't see this thing going away and the pressure for an independent investigator is only going to increase, especially if Trump tries to appoint a questionable replacement for Comey.

[mirth]

Hell, if BBmike, Steelie, and I think it's time for an independent investigator, you know things have turned :P

[Gusington]

'May you live in interesting times.'