Trump yearns for release of Comey report

WASHINGTON — Eager to begin another assault on the credibility of those investigating him, President Donald Trump said Tuesday he wants to know “what is taking so long” with an internal Justice Department investigation that is expected to cast a harsh spotlight on the FBI.

Trump’s early morning tweet underscores how the White House and Trump’s legal team view the upcoming watchdog report as a way to damage the reputation of fired FBI Director James Comey — and, by extension, discredit special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.

The report is expected to sharply criticize Comey’s handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation, which the White House initially cited as the rationale for firing the FBI chief last year. Trump and his allies continue to believe that any censures of Comey would undercut his value as a witness against the president and back up the decision to dismiss him last May.

Democrats have long criticized Comey’s decisions — including a news conference announcing his recommendation against criminal charges for Clinton, and his notification to Congress days before the election that the investigation was being reopened — as having broken from protocol in ways that damaged Clinton’s election prospects. An inspector general report, expected within days, is likely to find fault with some of those same actions.

The president’s allies have come to believe that pitting Trump’s trustworthiness against Comey’s is an argument they can win, according to three people close to the White House.

“This is going to be the final nail in his coffin,” Rudy Giuliani, one of Trump’s lawyers, said of Comey. “This guy has already proven to be a leaker and liar, and we believe the report is going to make that plain.”