Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
What links Becket’s murder and a sacked FBI chief?
An unexpected connection – murdered Thomas Becket and President Donald Trump It was a crime, right here in the middle of Canterbury, that sent shockwaves through the country, the church and the monarchy – and thrust the victim into sainthood.
And it seems the death of Thomas Becket nine centuries ago in Canterbury Cathedral still holds historians and Christians in awe.
Add to that list politicians. Because the assassination of the archbishop on December 29, 1179, by knights loyal to King Henry II has even raised its head at the Senate Intelligence committee hearings looking into the sacking of FBI chief James Comey by Donald Trump. Observers in Washington believe the president is at risk of impeachment over alleged Russian links to his campaign and if it is proved he actively obstructed justice in his dealings with Mr Comey. Senator Angus King asked the ousted FBI chief: “When a president of the United States in the Oval Office says something like ‘I hope’ or ‘I suggest’ or ‘Would you?’ do you take that as a directive?”
Mr Comey replied: “Yes. Yes, it rings in my ears as kind of ‘Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?’ ”
Senator King said: “I was just going to quote that: in 1179, December 27th, [sic] Henry II said, who will rid me of this meddlesome priest, and the next day, he was killed.”
According to Mr Comey, when referring to the FBI investigation, the president said: “I hope you can let this go”. Like the knights who heard Henry II’S words as an injunction to kill, Mr Comey interpreted the president’s “hope” as an order.
Writing in The Times, Ben Macintyre said: “The historical parallel illustrates two strands of an investigation that could end in Mr Trump’s impeachment: when does a wish constitute an order? And where does the line between personal fealty to a ruler end and loyalty to an institution begin?
“Like Mr Comey, Thomas Becket took what he considered a principled stand in defiance of his leader’s wishes. Henry II expected fidelity from his archbishop, just as Mr Trump allegedly asked the FBI director to pledge personal loyalty, which he refused to do.
“Henry II was forced to do penance at Becket’s tomb and the assassins were excommunicated. The archbishop was canonised within two years. There is more than a whiff of martyrdom surrounding James Comey. Mr Trump, like Henry II, must rue the day that he got rid of his meddlesome FBI director.”