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Comey’s Political Shrewdness Is on Display in Tussle With Trump - The New York Times

posted onJune 8, 2017
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Article snippet: WASHINGTON — The morning, at least, seemed to go reasonably well for President Trump. He announced a new F.B.I. director, and two intelligence chiefs told Congress the president had never pressured them to interfere in the investigation into Russian election meddling. And then James B. Comey, the tried to shut down part of the F.B.I. investigation. Mr. Trump may be relatively new to Washington, but Mr. Comey is not. A savvy veteran of the capital who has worked in high positions in multiple administrations, he has usually emerged on top in any internal power struggle. And in the month since his dismissal, Mr. Comey has shown why presidents are normally loath to fire F.B.I. directors. The release of Mr. Comey’s statement and the prospect of his televised testimony left the White House on the defensive on Wednesday. The president’s nomination of Christopher A. Wray to lead the F.B.I. and his trip to Ohio to discuss infrastructure were overshadowed, and administration aides were left grumbling about the coming spectacle of a longtime lawman accusing the commander in chief of actions that some lawyers call obstruction of justice. “At every turn since his firing, Comey has played his hand perfectly, controlling the narrative and preserving his well-earned reputation for integrity and professionalism, while Trump has only made his situation worse every time he opened his mouth or logged onto Twitter,” said Dan Pfeiffer, who was a senior adviser to President Barack Obam... Link to the full article to read more

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