Former FBI Director James Comey’s long-anticipated testimony before House committees finally took place on Dec. 7, after several weeks of legal wrangling that included a subpoena and a lawsuit.
Comey had spent several weeks demanding that any hearing where he testified must be televised and open to the public. The House committee chairmen responded by issuing a subpoena that compelled Comey to appear, and in response, Comey and his legal team then filed a lawsuit attempting to quash the subpoena.
A compromise was reached when both committees agreed to release a transcript publicly following Comey’s testimony.
After his testimony, Comey told reporters with confidence that when the transcript of the hearing was released, everyone would see he had nothing to hide, and that he was very truthful and honest. The transcript would also show how nothing of any real value was learned from the hearing, and that it was all just a desperate Republican attempt to rehash the Clinton email investigation.
When the actual transcript was released the following day, the testimony drew a very different picture than the one Comey had painted for the media. As it turns out, he was putting on an act—he was bluffing for the cameras.
Clueless and Detached FBI Director
The picture of Comey that emerges from the transcript is incredibly unflattering. He looks like a guy who has no idea what was actually going on at the federal agency he was supposedly in charge of running.
To sum up briefly some things that happened on Comey’s watch that he now insists he knows nothing about:
