GOP pivots, makes Comey most-wanted man
WASHINGTON — Republicans on Wednesday abruptly pivoted and rushed to call on James Comey, who was fired as FBI director by President Donald Trump last week, to testify before several committees, produce memos and provide greater detail of his encounters with the president.
After days of showing limited interest in drawing more attention to the emerging controversy about the president’s role in the investigation into Russian election meddling, Republicans were offering Comey highly public forums to lay out his version of events.
Comey, who has served as a foil, an object of derision and a political martyr for both parties, is suddenly Capitol Hill’s mostwanted man. On Wednesday, Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, sent a letter to Comey with the committee’s vice chairman, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., asking him to appear in both closed and open hearings before their committee.
The two senators also requested that Andrew McCabe, the acting FBI director, provide the committee with the memo that Comey is said to have written suggesting that Trump asked him to shut down an investigation into Michael Flynn, the former national security adviser.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said he planned to extend the same invitation for as early as next Wednesday after vowing to use his power to subpoena Comey’s memo if necessary.
Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee — who had largely dismissed the seriousness of the investigations into Trump’s ties to Russia and other matters — also asked Comey to appear before his committee. And Grassley joined Democrats in calling on the FBI to provide all memos relating to Comey’s interactions with his superiors in both the Trump and Obama administrations and for the White House to provide records of interactions with Comey, including any audiotapes, which Trump has suggested he made.
Warner, referring to Comey, said Wednesday: “I think there are an awful lot of members on both sides of the aisle that want to know what he knew.”
That sentiment appeared to be shared by Republican Senate leaders.
Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the normally laconic majority leader, told The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, “I think we need to hear from him as soon as possible in public to respond to the issues that have been raised in recent days.”
Even Speaker Paul Ryan, who has shown near indifference to Trump’s troubles throughout most of his presidency, said he supported Chaffetz’s efforts to learn more about Comey’s dealings with the president.
“There are some people out there who want to harm the president,” Ryan said. “But we have an obligation to carry out our oversight, regardless of which party is in the White House. And that means, before rushing to judgment, we get all the pertinent information.”
The shift demonstrates the increasing gravity of the accusations against Trump and affords Comey the opportunity, if he so wishes, to publicly deliver his account on why he thinks he was dismissed by Trump.