Gangster presidency
Re “Trump fires Comey,” May 10
President Trump does not understand the concept of checks and balances, which the founding fathers put in place to secure our democracy. He has always done whatever he wants and said whatever he wants. He answers to no one and surrounds himself with yes men and women.
Trump conducts his presidency as if he were a gangster, rewarding those who are loyal to him regardless of what the facts are. I can just see Trump telling Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions to come up with a legal basis for firing FBI Director James Comey; ironically Sessions and his deputy came up with something that happened months ago concerning Comey’s handling of Hillary Clinton’s email, the very thing Trump complimented him for doing during the campaign.
Trump has fired Comey, acting Atty. Gen. Sally Yates and U.S. Atty. Preet Bharara, all people of integrity whom Trump cannot control and were investigating the president. It’s time for members of Congress to stand up to Trump and protect the democratic process and the American people. Alba Farfaglia San Clemente
It is now imperative that a special commission be established to continue the investigation of the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia.
I do not believe for one minute that Comey was fired because of his handling of the Clinton email investigation (Trump had praised him for that). Last week, Comey asked the Department of Justice for additional funds to expand the Russia investigation; he made that request to Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general who wrote the letter detailing why Comey should be fired. Astonishing.
This looks too much like President Nixon’s firing of special prosecutor Archibald Cox in 1973.
Simi Valley
Trump’s letter to Comey thanking him for purportedly informing the president that he is not under investigation is akin to an obvious tell by a poker player that he has a weak hand.
In this case, Comey’s investigation may have been close to revealing Trump’s and his cronies’ close ties to Russia. It is also reminiscent of Nixon’s claim during the Watergate scandal that “I am not a crook.”
Hopefully, even Republican members of Congress will see the firing of Comey for what it is: a flagrant abuse of power and attempt to cover up what may amount to illegal actions. Congress should not hesitate in calling for the appointment of an independent special prosecutor.
Perhaps such appointment will mark the beginning of the end of this train wreck of a presidency. Jeff Skiljan
Encinitas
All Americans should be rejoicing over Trump’s firing of Comey. The FBI director’s dismissal has shown once again that Trump is a great president.
Comey was not fit to be the director of the most prestigious investigative agency in America. He proved this once and for all on July 5, 2016, when he announced that he was not recommending criminal charges against Hillary Clinton for the illegal use of a secret and private email server. Everyone with more than half a brain knows that Clinton deserved to be prosecuted for breaking numerous federal laws and endangering American security.
Comey probably knew this but did not have the backbone to recommend
charges. The FBI cannot have a director who ignores the law and has no spine.
It’s very comforting to have an adult in the White House with the courage to make this a better country. Bob Wallace
Las Vegas
I was one who begged for Comey’s removal last July and louder still in October, when he announced that he was reopening his investigation of Clinton less than two weeks before the election. I see the karma of his dismissal now. Sadly, he ruined his own reputation and his agency’s.
But the circumstances of this dismissal and its implications for the future of our country cannot be diminished. The echoes of Watergate ring loudly. We are again at a crossroads, and it’s really up to the Republicans in Congress to determine if our nation can survive.
The only option is for an independent investigation. Will the Department of Justice and Congress put America ahead of their vested interests? We can hope so. Arlene Hoffman
Fullerton
Thanks to Comey’s interference in the election, the Supreme Court will be in Republican hands for decades.
I sincerely hope Trump’s Russian connection gets him out of office, but still, I will sleep OK at night knowing Comey is gone. Ted Herrmann
Los Angeles
The manner in which Trump fired Comey vividly demonstrates that Trump has absolutely no class despite all his money, fancy planes, ostentatious homes and other luxuries. And I say that not being a fan of Comey.
Rather than wait until Comey returned from his trip to Los Angeles on Tuesday and met with him face to face, Trump chose to send a letter to his office, as if waiting another day would have made any difference. George Lazik
Woodland Hills
How many more incidents of our president’s weird and irrational behavior must we Americans suffer before it rises to the level of impeachment? I am unable to sleep for fear of his next impulse. Hilda Rolfe
Los Angeles