Trump: Comey ‘either very sick or very dumb’ because he ‘can’t define what a leak is’
President Trump early Friday said former FBI Director James Comey “can’t define what a leak is” and doubled down on his accusations that Comey illegally leaked classified information by sharing memos.
“Is everybody believing what is going on. James Comey can’t define what a leak is. He illegally leaked CLASSIFIED INFORMATION but doesn’t understand what he did or how serious it is. He lied all over the place to cover it up. He’s either very sick or very dumb. Remember sailor!” Trump tweeted.
Is everybody believing what is going on. James Comey can’t define what a leak is. He illegally leaked CLASSIFIED INFORMATION but doesn’t understand what he did or how serious it is. He lied all over the place to cover it up. He’s either very sick or very dumb. Remember sailor!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 27, 2018
Trump’s tweet comes after two heated exchanges between Comey and news anchors this week, the first during a CNN town hall with Anderson Cooper and the second during an interview with Fox News’s Bret Baier.
{mosads}During the interviews, Comey contested Trump’s assertion that releasing a memo detailing his conversations with the president constituted a leak.
“He’s just wrong. Facts really do matter,” Comey responded in his interview with Baier. “Which is why I’m on your show, to answer your questions. That memo was unclassified then, it’s still unclassified.”
Trump has branded Comey a “liar” and “leaker,” claiming the ex-FBI director shared classified information. Since the start of Comey’s recent media blitz promoting his new book, Trump claimed Comey’s leaks led to the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller, suggesting the entire process was illegitimate.
Trump’s mention of a “sailor” in his tweet appears to be a reference to Kristian Saucier, whom Trump has previously tweeted about and pardoned earlier this year.
Saucier was a machinist’s mate on the USS Alexandria, a nuclear attack submarine, from 2007 to 2012. He was later charged in 2015 with taking photos of classified spaces on the submarine. He spent a year in jail and was given an “other than honorable” discharge from the Navy.
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