Trump: I Was Going to Fire Comey ‘Regardless of Recommendation’

Thursday in a preview clip of President Donald Trump’s interview with Lester Holt set to air later today on NBC’s “Nightly News,” Trump said he was going to fire FBI Director James Comey “regardless” of the recommendation from the Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

Partial transcript as follows:

HOLT: Monday you met with the Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein..

TRUMP: Right.

HOLT: Did you ask for a recommendation?

TRUMP: What I did is I was going to fire Comey. My decision. It was not —

HOLT: You made the decision before they came in the room?

TRUMP: I was going to fire Comey. There’s no good time to do it, by the way. They —

HOLT: Because in your letter you said I have accepted recommendations. You had already made the decision?

TRUMP: I was going to fire regardless of recommendation. He made a recommendation. He’s highly respected, very good guy, very smart guy, the Democrats like him, the Republicans like him. He made a recommendation. But regardless of recommendation, I was going to fire Comey.

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