Trump on the offensive as investigation targets allies
Donald Trump yesterday launched an angry attack against the investigation closing in on his inner circle, denouncing the FBI and trying to divert attention back to Hillary Clinton’s emails.
There was deepening speculation that the president is being investigated for obstruction of justice after Michael Flynn, his former national security adviser, said he was guilty of lying to FBI agents.
Mr Trump’s tirade was an unprecedented attack on one of his federal agencies and focused on its former director James Comey.
“After years of Comey – with the phony and dishonest Clinton investigation (and more) – running the FBI, its reputation is in tatters. The worst in history,” he wrote. “But fear not, we will bring it back to greatness.”
His words suggest turmoil at the White House and follow a difficult week for Mr Trump. The Republicans steered a sweeping tax cut through the senate on Friday, but the investigation into his campaign’s ties to Russia dampened celebration.
Mr Flynn served as a key foreign policy adviser and his decision to begin co-operating with investigators is expected to expose more senior figures in Mr Trump’s inner circle, possibly including his son-inlaw, Jared Kushner.
Analysts said the developments would increase the president’s sense of victimisation.
Mr Trump yesterday railed against ABC News – which was forced to suspend a reporter and issue a correction for its coverage – the justice department and the FBI.
He highlighted reports that an FBI officer had been removed from special counsel Robert Mueller’s team investigating Russian election interference because of anti-Trump text messages.
Peter Strzok was an experienced counter-intelligence officer who helped to lead the investigation into whether Hillary Clinton mishandled classified information.
“Report: ‘Anti-Trump FBI agent led Clinton email probe.’ Now it all starts to make sense,” Mr Trump wrote.
He and his supporters have repeatedly demanded to know why the FBI dropped its investigation into Ms Clinton’s use of a private email server, while four members of the Trump team have now been charged.
“So Gen Flynn lies to the FBI and his life is destroyed,” wrote Mr Trump, “while Crooked Hillary Clinton – on that now famous FBI holiday ‘interrogation’ with no swearing in and no recording – lies many times and nothing happens to her?”
He also denied asking Mr Comey when he was FBI director to drop his investigation into Mr Flynn. That allegation forms the basis of accusations of obstruction of justice.
Things could get worse for the president. Mr Flynn’s plea deal specifies that he will answer questions and undergo lie detector tests and “may include participating in covert law enforcement activities”.
Law enforcement experts said that suggested he could have been asked to wear a wire or record telephone conversations.
While every twist and turn has been seized on by the president’s critics, many of his supporters remain unimpressed.
Michael Johns, a founder of the ultra-conservative Tea Party, said there was nothing illegal about speaking to Russian officials during an election campaign.
“It’s very difficult to look at this a year and a half on and conclude there’s a broad illegal conspiracy,” Mr Johns said. “You have to conclude this is more of a political fact-finding operation than it is a law enforcement investigation.”
But conservative critics suggested Mr Trump’s diversionary tactics hinted at secrets.
Bill Kristol, editor-at-large of the Weekly Standard, wrote on Twitter: “Trump sure is behaving like someone with a lot to hide, which he hopes to keep hidden by putting the focus on the investigators.”
Rex Tillerson, the secretary of state, tried to dispel another source of instability, denying that he would be replaced by Mike Pompeo, the director of the CIA.
Mr Trump has frequently undermined Mr Tillerson by publicly contradicting his positions on everything from North Korea to Qatar.
Mr Tillerson said the reports of his removal were wrong. “People need to get better sources,” he said, before attending a state department dinner to celebrate the recipients of this year’s Kennedy Centre Honours. Mr Tillerson said he hoped to be at the same reception next year.
There is deepening speculation that the president is being investigated for obstruction of justice President denounces FBI and tries to deflect attention to Hillary Clinton