Comey's Weak Case

[EasyAce]

Editorial
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/448480/james-comey-testimony-obstruction-justice-not-proven

James Comey’s much-anticipated testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee largely confirmed what we
knew already.

The former FBI director painted a deeply unflattering portrait of the president, as self-serving and dishonest. Comey said
that he felt compelled to carefully document his interactions with President Trump because he did not believe that Trump
would portray those interactions truthfully, if the need ever arose. Comey also had harsh words about the White House’s
misleading explanation for his firing, initially portrayed as a reaction to his handling of the Hillary Clinton e-mail investi-
gation. This character indictment cannot come as a surprise to anyone who has observed Donald Trump over the past two
years . . .

. . . Comey’s testimony largely backed up what has seemed to be the case for a while: The president, hypersensitive to
unfriendly press coverage, behaved irresponsibly by badgering his FBI director about an ongoing investigation and creating
yet another situation in which James Comey would have to choose one side of a partisan divide — not unlike the situation
into which he was put by Loretta Lynch during the Clinton e-mail investigation. Given his legal power over the FBI director
— he has the authority to end any investigation, provided the motivation for doing so is not corrupt, and he has the
authority to fire the FBI director at will — it is incumbent upon the president to avoid creating any impression of a conflict
of interest. Donald Trump did not do that. However, this is still a far cry from obstruction of justice, as defined by law . . .

. . . What is needed in the aftermath of the Comey hearing is no different than what was needed all along: a thorough,
independent investigation of the swath of concerns raised by Russia’s attempted intrusion into last year’s election. The
Senate Intelligence Committee’s ability to conduct a hearing largely devoid of grandstanding and circus antics is encour-
aging in this regard. President Trump’s nominee to replace Comey at the FBI, Christopher Wray, a Bush-administration
hand, has been well received on both sides of the aisle. And while we remain wary of special counsels, Robert Mueller
(Comey’s predecessor at the FBI) has a wide investigatory brief and a reputation for doggedness. More facts are sure to
come out over the next several months.

In the meantime, President Trump would do well to refrain from insinuating himself any further into this mess. The last
several months have shown that Donald Trump’s personal crisis-management is likely to lead only to more crisis.