Trump says Comey not telling truth, willing to respond under oath

[rooster59]

Trump says Comey not telling truth, willing to respond under oath

By Steve Holland

 

U.S. President Donald Trump smiles during the Infrastructure Summit with Governors and Mayors at the White House in Washington, U.S., June 8, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday denied that he tried to block an FBI investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn, effectively accusing James Comey, the FBI's former director, of lying under oath to Congress.

 

Comey delivered scathing remarks about the president on Thursday at a congressional hearing and testified that Trump had asked him to drop a Federal Bureau of Investigation probe into former aide Michael Flynn and his alleged ties to Russia.

 

Trump says Comey's testimony also vindicated him from allegations that he colluded with Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

 

"James Comey confirmed a lot of what I said. And some of the things that he said just weren't true," Trump said at an event in the White House Rose Garden.

 

Asked by a reporter if he had told Comey to drop the investigation into former national security adviser Flynn, Trump said, "I didn't say that."

 

The reporter then asked, "So he lied about that?"

 

"Well, I didn't say that. I mean, I will tell you, I didn't say that," Trump replied. "And there would be nothing wrong if I did say it according to everybody that I've read today, but I did not say that," he said.

 

In his testimony, Comey also said Trump asked him in January to pledge loyalty to the president, an unusual request that would put in doubt the independence of the FBI.

 

"I hardly know the man. I'm not going to say I want you to pledge allegiance. Who would do that?" Trump said at joint news conference with Romanian President Klaus Iohannis.

 

Comey's testimony was the most eagerly anticipated U.S. congressional hearing in years. The issue of the Trump election campaign's relationship with Russia has dogged Trump's first months in office and distracted from his policy goals such as overhauling the U.S. healthcare system and making tax cuts.

 

Comey, who was fired by Trump in May, did not make any major disclosures about any links between Trump or his associates and alleged Russian meddling.

 

Asked on Friday if he would be willing to go under oath to give his version of his interactions with Comey, Trump replied, "100 percent."

 

He said he would be happy to speak to special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating allegations that Russia interfered with the election and colluded with Trump's campaign.

 

"I would be glad to tell him exactly what I just told you," Trump told a reporter.

 

Trump’s offer to testify under oath would pit his word against Comey’s before federal investigators.

 

If either Trump’s testimony or memos written by Comey about his conversations with the president turn out to be untrue, either man could be charged with lying to federal investigators.

 

A U.S. president is given a wide array of immunities from criminal prosecutions. The U.S. Constitution does not directly address whether the president can be criminally prosecuted, and the area is the subject of legal debate. A president can be charged after leaving office.

 

Trump wrote earlier on Friday on Twitter that the former FBI head had vindicated him by telling the Senate Intelligence Committee that the president had not been personally under investigation in the Russia probe.

 

With a single tweet, Trump also castigated Comey as "a leaker" for giving an account of his conversation with the president to a law professor who shared it with a news outlet.

 

"Despite so many false statements and lies, total and complete vindication ... and WOW, Comey is a leaker!" Trump tweeted.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-06-10

[pitrevie]

Well Trump can always produce the tapes or was that a lie too?

[darksidedog]

Out of the two of them I know who I believe. Donalds day isn't complete without a handful of lies.

[Credo]

On one hand Trump says that Comey's testimony totally vindicates him, etc.    On the other hand, he says he is a liar.   

 

 

[tonray]

laugh laugh laugh.....ha ha...Trump calls someone a liar. Side splitting too early for this....

[Rob13]

5 minutes ago, tonray said:

laugh laugh laugh.....ha ha...Trump calls someone a liar. Side splitting too early for this....

comes under  'takes one to know one' rule.

[boomerangutang]

Not even Melania or Ivanka believes anything he says.

He said, several months ago; "I would love to release my tax returns, believe me!"

Today he says he would love to testify.  

 

Trump testifying will be political drama, if you like answers like, 'that's executive privilege' 'that's classified' or 'i invoke the 5th.'

spiced up with; "everything any person said about me, that's not praising me, are lies and fake news."

added to; "anything anyone says which praises me, is true."

 

[tomwct]

The Real Liars are the Lame Duck Media, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, Washington Post & New York Times. Watching America Becoming Great Again. Thank you President Trump! Stock market hitting new Highs yesterday!

Edited June 10, 2017 by tomwct

[darksidedog]

I do not see Trump giving evidence under oath. It would be a death wish. He has proven himself incapable of telling the truth about anything for more than about three sentences at a time. Federal investigators would rip his story to shreds. He should keep his stupid mouth shut.

[Berkshire]

If Trump were to testify under oath, he will be impeached...GUARANTEED.  Trump is incapable of being truthful and will perjure himself.  This is not an opinion or a guess.  Trump lies constantly and can't stop lying, even when under oath.

[FritsSikkink]

48 minutes ago, tomwct said:

The Real Liars are the Lame Duck Media, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, Washington Post & New York Times. Watching America Becoming Great Again. Thank you President Trump! Stock market hitting new Highs yesterday!

[helpisgood]

Right now, it's pretty much "he said, he said."  Although, Comey does have the contemporaneous memo(s) and that he also contemporaneously revealed what had happened to his FBI colleagues, who could also testify.  Plus, the mere fact that Trump had cleared the room, including his own attorney-general to whom the FBI reports to, creates suspicion.

 

So, I am looking forward to seeing if and when Congress will subpoena the tape(s) that Trump had intimated in that often mentioned tweet.  I saw in WaPo, among others, that Democrats on the Senate Intelligence Committee have called for such a subpoena. 

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/house-intelligence-panel-demands-any-tapes-from-trump-memos-from-comey/2017/06/09/ed455044-4d25-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html?utm_term=.95a8ff772444

 

This should either help settle what really was said or Trump will have to state that no such tape(s) exist, the latter of which makes him look like a liar yet again.  Of course, I wonder if Trump would say that there is such a tape or tapes, but will claim executive privilege, which could be settled in a court, or some other excuse.   

 

As for Trump testifying under oath, it's not his penchant for lying that may be his biggest problem.  Instead, I wonder if he has the skill to keep his lies consistent especially when being interrogated by an experienced prosecutor.  I think Trump is used to only coming up for a lie that gets him through one immediate situation, and then worry about details and other situations later.  He doesn't seem to have the best attention span. 

Edited June 10, 2017 by helpisgood
grammar

[bandito]

If Trump is going to testify on oath then either Comey or Trump is lying, under oath.

Interesting scenario, who is?

[Rob13]

Just now, bandito said:

If Trump is going to testify on oath then either Comey or Trump is lying, under oath.

Interesting scenario, who is?

Probably won't be much of a contest. No doubt  the FBI guy CYAed himself and trump didn't.

[JHolmesJr]

2 hours ago, darksidedog said:

Out of the two of them I know who I believe. Donalds day isn't complete without a handful of lies.

Luckily this case does not hang on what YOU or those of your ilk believe.

 

Comey  has bitten off more of the Trumpburger than he can chew.

 

He hasn't left a dent on the Prez….all he's done is cast a shadow on the MSM by exposing their lies about team trump's collusion with russia. Thats a nothing burger.

 

And he's admitted to leaking stuff when he feels pressured….good luck getting another sensitive gig Comey.

 

Plus he doesn't even have any sensational news to put in a future book. 

 

Comey is done bigly…forever. Buh bye.

 

 

Edited June 10, 2017 by JHolmesJr

[attrayant]

8 minutes ago, JHolmesJr said:

He hasn't left a dent on the Prez

 

That's why Trump had to bring in his $1500/hour lawyer, right?

[darksidedog]

9 minutes ago, JHolmesJr said:

Luckily this case does not hang on what YOU or those of your ilk believe.

 

Comey  has bitten off more of the Trumpburger than he can chew.

 

He hasn't left a dent on the Prez….all he's done is cast a shadow on the MSM by exposing their lies about team trump's collusion with russia. Thats a nothing burger.

 

And he's admitted to leaking stuff when he feels pressured….good luck getting another sensitive gig Comey.

 

Plus he doesn't even have any sensational news to put in a future book. 

 

Comey is done bigly…forever. Buh bye.

 

 

Lets introduce some fact into the discussion shall we? According to Politifact, (Who accurately and impartially check out all politicians statements), only one thing out of every 20 Trump says is actually totally true. When you include mostly and even partially true that number rises to  a disgracefully low 32%. Shockingly 49% of what he says is either false or total and outrageous lies. And yet, you think his word can be trusted above a man with a reputation for total honesty? I welcome Trump giving testimony under oath, though I strongly suspect he will back out of that, as he knows he will be exposed for what he is.

http://www.politifact.com/personalities/donald-trump/

[JHolmesJr]

1 minute ago, darksidedog said:

Lets introduce some fact into the discussion shall we? According to Politifact, (Who accurately and impartially check out all politicians statements), only one thing out of every 20 Trump says is actually totally true. When you include mostly and even partially true that number rises to  a disgracefully low 32%. Shockingly 49% of what he says is either false or total and outrageous lies. And yet, you think his word can be trusted above a man with a reputation for total honesty? I welcome Trump giving testimony under oath, though I strongly suspect he will back out of that, as he knows he will be exposed for what he is.

http://www.politifact.com/personalities/donald-trump/

statistics are like a bikini…what they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital…..happy googling.

[darksidedog]

1 minute ago, JHolmesJr said:

statistics are like a bikini…what they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital…..happy googling.

I did as you suggested. I googled and guess what? More lies! Google truly is my friend. Maybe you should try it too!

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/donald-trump-speech-fact-check-lies-claims-joint-address-congress-jobs-immigration-pipeline-a7604861.html

https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2017/06/05/donald-trump-has-said-100s-of-false-things-heres-all-of-them.html

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/5/1/15503868/trump-lies-count

and this is just scratching the surface...

[Becker]

7 minutes ago, JHolmesJr said:

statistics are like a bikini…what they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital…..happy googling.

Wow, what a comeback! Blew the proven fact that the man-child is a notorious liar clean out of the water!!

 

BTW, here is what Faux News were attacking President Obama for at a similar point in his presidency:

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/fox-news-attacking-barack-obama-145452400.html

Edited June 10, 2017 by Becker

[stevenl]

He believes his own lies, so 'under oath' does not add anything, nor would a lie detector.

[Gecko123]

2 hours ago, tomwct said:

The Real Liars are the Lame Duck Media, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, Washington Post & New York Times. Watching America Becoming Great Again. Thank you President Trump! Stock market hitting new Highs yesterday!

The stock market (which, by the way, with a 25.72 PE ratio for the S&P 500 is extremely overvalued by historical measures) has largely gone up since Trump was elected because corporate America would reap a windfall under his economic proposals. The promise of huge cuts in corporate and upper class tax rates which will cause the deficit and national debt to spiral out of control (and in the process risk the financial viability of entitlement programs); lax enforcement of Wall Street by federal regulators, and the gutting of regulations which are designed to protect the little guy from environmental, workplace, product and drug safety dangers are the primary reasons the stock market has gone up under Trump. Tell me again how all this is going to help the average Trump supporter?

Edited June 10, 2017 by Gecko123

[Emster23]

why anyone would think that Trump testifying under oath would somehow make him speak the truth is beyond me. He is already on the road to impeachment, and like they say, you can only hang him once.

 Reminds me of Cagney movie where he slugs guard on way to electric chair, and defiantly says  something like "What ya gonna do, kill me?"

[DM07]

Bring it, punk!

[Srikcir]

1 hour ago, JHolmesJr said:

Plus he doesn't even have any sensational news to put in a future book.

Au contraire.

Compared to his former $170,000 annual FBI salary, Comey stands to become wealthy measured by middle class standards.

 

Comey will get a multi-million dollar book deal, a movie, a mini-series, primetime special — Diane Sawyer, or why not George Stephanopoulos? Why not go totally in for the Clintons and probably a MSNBC contributorship? He wants to be booked on Rachel Maddow, Stephen Colbert, Bill Maher http://www.breitbart.com/video/2017/05/17/hannity-predicts-book-deal-msnbc-contributorship-and-maddow-colbert-maher-bookings-for-comey/

 

Former FBI director James Comey could be in for a massive $10 million book deal. https://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/politics/2017/06/09/james-comey-could-snag-10m-deal-tell-all-book/102687024/

 

[yardrunner]

2 hours ago, tomwct said:

The Real Liars are the Lame Duck Media, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, Washington Post & New York Times.

and if you believe that then you must believe that the moon is made of green cheese

[yardrunner]

2 hours ago, darksidedog said:

I do not see Trump giving evidence under oath. It would be a death wish. He has proven himself incapable of telling the truth about anything for more than about three sentences at a time. Federal investigators would rip his story to shreds. He should keep his stupid mouth shut.

no he should testify, then perhaps the Americans can get rid of Trump because it is obvious that he would not recognise  the truth if it jumped up and bit him

[boomerangutang]

2 hours ago, tomwct said:

The Real Liars are the Lame Duck Media, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, Washington Post & New York Times. Watching America Becoming Great Again. Thank you President Trump! Stock market hitting new Highs yesterday!

                   I asked this question a week ago, and not surprisingly, no one could answer:   Here it is for the 3rd time: Please name ONE mainstream media report which was proven factually wrong.  

 

                      Nearly all the data we have re; Trump's lies, Trump's anti-American behavior, and his ties to the Russkies is via mainstream media.  MSmedia is also who are connecting the dots.    

All Trumpsters can do (each time a story is published) is deny everything, and then when they can no longer deny due to overwhelming (usually video) evidence, they reluctantly agree to as little as possible, along with diversions, blaming HRC/Obama, soggy excuses, and more lying.
 

2 hours ago, Berkshire said:

If Trump were to testify under oath, he will be impeached...GUARANTEED.  Trump is incapable of being truthful and will perjure himself.  This is not an opinion or a guess.  Trump lies constantly and can't stop lying, even when under oath.

                        Congress is controlled by Reps.  Reps don't give a wren's poop about lying - if it's their guy lying.  Republicans want to get their anti-American policies and tax-breaks-for-the-rich pushed through (if possible).  When they've done as much damage to the US as possible, then they'll abandoned Trump like baby Sarah's soiled diaper.

[boomerangutang]

I can almost hear champagne corks popping in Moscow.

[55Jay]

Bob Mueller's group will get to President Trump in time, dictated by the investigation, not Trump's prerogative.