The New York Times, quoting three unnamed Congressional officials, alleges that Comey went to Rod J. Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, for additional funds. They noted that Rosenstein is also the one who wrote the Justice Department memo that supported Comey’s firing.
Rosenstein is the highest official involved in the Russian investigation, as Attorney General Jeff Sessions has recused himself.
The Associated Press reported a similar story, also citing unnamed sources.
— AP Politics (@AP_Politics) May 10, 2017
But Katy Tur of NBC News reported on Twitter that Sarah Isgur Flores, the director of public affairs at the Department of Justice, flatly denied that Comey asked for more money or more resources.
— Katy Tur (@KatyTurNBC) May 10, 2017
“Completely false,” Tur quoted Flores as saying.
The New York Times also quoted Flores as saying that the paper’s sources are incorrect, and that “the idea that he asked for more funding” for the Russian investigation was “totally false.” Still, the Times article continued to state the claims from their unnamed sources as fact.
“It was unclear how Mr. Rosenstein reacted to the request, or whether the White House was informed of it,” the Times reported.
The article goes on to speculate that, “to a president who puts a premium on loyalty, Mr. Comey represented a fiercely independent official who wielded incredible power.”
“Frankly, I don’t think it matters what this president says, you’re going to have Democrats come out and fight him every single step of the way. I think that is one of the things that’s wrong with Washington, and I think that is one of the reasons that we have got to get back to focusing on those issues,” Huckabee Sanders said.
When asked whether Trump was surprised by the backlash or anticipated it, Huckabee Sanders responded, “How could he have, considering the fact that most of the people that are declaring war today were the very ones that were begging for Director Comey to be fired?”
“If Hillary Clinton had won the election, which thank god she didn’t, but if she had – and she had been in the same position – she would have fired Comey immediately and the very Democrats that are criticizing the president today would be dancing in the streets celebrating,” Huckabee Sanders said. She added that such behaviour is the “purest form of hypocrisy.”
