He told reporters in the Oval Office that Comey was "not doing a good job."
ADVERTISEMENT
Trump makes first public comments on firing Comey: 'He wasn't doing a good job'
President Donald Trump has spoken out about his decision to fire FBI Director James Comey.
President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Wednesday after his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
"He wasn't doing a good job," Trump said. "Very simply. He was not doing a good job."
Reporters also asked whether Comey's firing would affect Trump's meetings Wednesday with Russian officials, to which Trump responded "no." Trump didn't respond when asked whether the next FBI director would be in charge, as Comey was, of the bureau's investigation into whether Trump associates colluded with Russian officials to influence the 2016 presidential election.
Trump made the comments during a surprise Oval Office meeting with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.
ADVERTISEMENT
Trump fired Comey on Tuesday on the recommendation of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Rosenstein said in a memo that Comey "was wrong to usurp the Attorney General's authority" and that the FBI's reputation and credibility had "suffered substantial damage" after Comey publicly announced the FBI's view that an investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails should be closed without prosecution.
JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!
ADVERTISEMENT
Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:
Email: eyewitness@pulse.ng
ADVERTISEMENT