Trump Fires FBI Director Comey to Stop Russia Investigation, Tells Russians "Pressure Taken Off"

confirmed Importance 6/10 ~1 min read 3 sources 5 actors

Trump fired FBI Director James Comey while under FBI investigation for Russian connections. Day after firing, Trump told Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov and Ambassador Kislyak in Oval Office that he had “faced great pressure because of Russia” which had been “taken off” by Comey’s termination. In NBC interview, Trump admitted he was thinking of “this Russia thing with Trump and Russia” when making decision. Mueller Report documented as textbook “referee neutralization” to obstruct justice investigation.

Sources & Citations

[1] Mueller Report Volume II: Firing of James Comey · Apr 18, 2019 Tier 1

[2] Trump told Russians that firing "nut job" Comey eased pressure from investigation · May 19, 2017 Tier 1

[3] Trump says he was thinking of Russia controversy when he decided to fire Comey · May 11, 2017 Tier 1

Tiers Tier 1 court records & gov docs · Tier 2 established outlets · Tier 3 regional & specialty press · Tier 4 opinion or single-source. Methodology →

Cite this entry

The Cascade Ledger. “Trump Fires FBI Director Comey to Stop Russia Investigation, Tells Russians "Pressure Taken Off".” The Capture Cascade Timeline, May 9, 2017. https://capturecascade.org/event/2017-05-09--comey-firing-russia-investigation/