WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump will not exert executive privilege over former FBI Director James Comey as he is set to testify this week on Capitol Hill.
A statement from Press Secretary Sean Spicer released Monday afternoon read:
The President’s power to assert executive privilege is well-established. However, in order to facilitate a swift and thorough examination of the facts sought by the Senate Intelligence Committee, President Trump will not assert executive privilege regarding James Comey’s scheduled testimony.
Comey is set to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday regarding the investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Comey was fired as FBI Director last month.
Comey has alleged that Trump suggested he drop the investigation into former Trump National Security Advisor Michael Flynn. Reports citing “sources” state that a memo allegedly records Trump pressuring Comey — although no memo has been produced to date. CNN reported that sources described the memo to them, but that they had not actually seen the memo at the time of their report.
Comey has already spoken with Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who has taken over the investigation into possible collusion between the Trump presidential campaign and Russia, regarding the upcoming testimony according to CNN which cited an unnamed source. The discussion was reported to have occurred in order to prevent legal issues with what Comey testifies to. Comey faces potential conflicts as the FBI’s investigation into Trump and Russia is still ongoing.
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