Trump Accuses Comey Of Leaking Classified Info To Media: 'So Illegal!'

[DonViejo]

Last edited Mon Jul 10, 2017, 01:36 PM - Edit history (1)

Source: Talking Points Memo

By ESME CRIBB Published JULY 10, 2017 9:21 AM

President Donald Trump on Monday accused former FBI Director James Comey of illegally leaking classified information to the media, going on the defensive amid reports that during the 2016 campaign his son Donald Trump Jr. met with a Kremlin-connected lawyer who promised him damaging information on Hillary Clinton.

Trump claimed Comey “leaked CLASSIFIED INFORMATION to the media” in a tweet early Monday morning.

“That is so illegal!” the President tweeted.

Link to tweet

He also retweeted a “Fox and Friends” Link to tweet
" target="_blank">interview with former House Oversight Committee chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) about his attempts to acquire Comey’s personal memos about his conversations with Trump.

-snip-

Read more: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/trump-accuses-comey-leaking-classified-info

---

-------------------------------------------------------

Fox & Friends sent a misleading tweet. Then Trump accused James Comey of a crime.

Updated by Garet Williams [e-mail] Jul 10, 2017, 11:41am EDT

President Trump tweeted Monday morning that former FBI Director James Comey “leaked CLASSIFIED INFORMATION” when he provided the New York Times with information about his meetings with the president.

There’s no evidence that is true. The president’s tweet apparently came from a segment on Fox & Friends, which was a misleading interpretation of a report from the Hill newspaper on the contents of Comey’s memos.

Link to tweet

The Hill said that, based on interviews with unnamed “officials familiar with the documents,” more than half of Comey’s memos contained classified information. Because of this, the circumstances of the creation and storage of the memos that did contain classified information could have run afoul of FBI protocols. But the report does not claim that Comey actually leaked classified information to the New York Times or anyone else.

The president retweeted this misleading Fox & Friends video concerning these allegations less than 10 minutes before his outburst.

Link to tweet

more
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/7/10/15946878/trump-comey-twitter-leak-classified-fox-and-friends

[Gothmog]

1. These disclosures were not illegal

[George II]

2. They weren't classified.

[N_E_1 for Tennis]

6. Well....IDK...

http://thehill.com/policy/national-security/341225-comeys-private-memos-on-trump-conversations-contained-classified

From article

More than half of the memos former FBI chief James Comey wrote as personal recollections of his conversations with President Trump about the Russia investigation have been determined to contain classified information, according to interviews with officials familiar with the documents.

This revelation raises the possibility that Comey broke his own agency’s rules and ignored the same security protocol that he publicly criticized Hillary Clinton for in the waning days of the 2016 presidential election.

Comey testified last month he considered the memos to be personal documents and that he shared at least one of them with a Columbia University lawyer friend. He asked that lawyer to leak information from one memo to the news media in hopes of increasing pressure to get a special prosecutor named in the Russia case after Comey was fired as FBI director.

-snip-

[George II]

7. It appears to be a matter of interpretation. I would trust Comey's assessment of his memos.

[onenote]

13. If his interpretation is that the memos were "personal" documents, that's a loser

One cannot create a "personal" document containing classified information and disseminate it. If that was okay, then anyone attending a top secret briefing could go home and make an entry in their "personal diary" describing the top secret information and then publish it.

The issue should turn on whether any of the information Comey included in his memo(s) was in fact classified or subject to limitations on its disclosure.

[Dopers_Greed]

11. He only released one memo to the public

[George II]

17. That's what I heard. He may have done that to confirm that he did indeed write up....

...details of his meetings with trump, withholding the others for the time being.

Comey may have come off as partisan at times, but he's a brilliant man.

[muriel_volestrangler]

35. TPM on the author of that: "The Easy Mark"

---snip---

Years ago John Solomon was either the lead or one of the lead politics reporters at AP. He had a well-earned reputation as the easiest mark in the business for GOP oppo research hits. It was actually a kind of running gag among Republican campaign operatives. No one will run with a story you’re trying to float? Bring it to John Solomon.
...
At the time, it was never clear to me whether this was more a matter of laziness or ideology. Subsequent events helped clarify things. Later Solomon went to work as the editor-in-chief of The Washington Times. And now he’s running Circa. You may remember that Circa was a startup with an ingenious but ultimately flawed or perhaps premature concept that debuted to much fanfare but ultimately shuttered. The URL and social media feeds of Circa were purchased by Sinclair Broadcasting, a hyper-right-wing media conglomerate, which is now buying up properties to bring its style of post-Fox News propaganda television nationwide. Sinclair put Solomon in charge of Circa and relaunched it as a Buzzfeed for right wing propaganda focused on millennials.

The story itself has some key features that are worth noting. Read the story and it’s clear the ‘findings’ reported come from congressional staffers who have just gotten access to Comey’s memos. In the nature of things that means Republican staffers. Even from the most cynical perspective, Democrats will not be leaking stuff to hurt Jim Comey. Their claim that the memos include classified information counts for essentially nothing.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/the-easy-mark

[Kablooie]

18. Technically, no but...

Anything that opposes Republicans is illegal in their eyes.
Written law is totally subservient to Republican power and part of that power is to determine what is legal or illegal solely from their whims.

[exboyfil]

3. Comey should immediately file

a libel lawsuit against Donald Trump. Get him under oath.

[exboyfil]

4. Did Comey retain any classified memos?

If he did then he is an idiot. He should have made unclassified versions of anything important in a separate note to himself. He should then have sent the classified memos to whatever archive (or individual) that could preserve them outside the reach of the executive branch.

[PJMcK]

9. Mr. Comey is not an idiot

His memos were sent internally to his leadership team at the FBI and he did it in ways that would preserve them.

His professional documents, emails, memos, etc. would all be retained by the FBI as part of their archives. It would be illegal to destroy any of them. It would be doubtful that Mr. Comey would take any classified information with him when he was fired from the Bureau because he would know that was a crime. As I wrote, he is not an idiot.

Of course, he would know the contents of the memos he wrote following his meetings with Trump, even if he didn't retain copies (since they contained classified information). This is how he was able to legally transmit "the content" of his memos without violating secrecy laws.

[onenote]

14. I don't think that's correct -- the information as well as the document containing it are classified

Under your approach, someone could attend a top secret briefing, go home and write a description of the top secret information in their "personal diary" and then publish it. That won't fly. The classified designation attaches not merely to the document containing it but to the classified content itself.

[PJMcK]

20. Your analysis can't be correct

First, Mr. Comey would know the secrecy laws better than you and I. Why would he knowingly commit a crime? That would not promote his agenda to get a special counsel appointed. It doesn't make sense.

Second, Mr. Comey's friend, to whom he passed some of the contents of his memos, is a highly accomplished lawyer who is a professor at Columbia University. He, too, would certainly know whether they were in any legal peril. Why would this man knowingly commit a crime? He isn't even a part of the government but he would be swept up in great legal jeopardy were his actions illegal. This doesn't make sense, either.

Lastly, the scenario that you ascribe to my approach is not what happened with Mr. Comey and it is not what I was suggesting. Remember, after his first meeting with Trump, Mr. Comey realized he should document his conversations with the president because he didn't think Trump was truthful. In his memos, he probably included classified information. But he did not give his colleague the memos, only some of the information he wrote in them. Mr. Comey's testimony to Congress supports this fact. Incidentally, were Mr. Comey's memos ever classified as Top Secret? I don't remember that ever being claimed although I could be wrong.

Importantly, just because a document is classified doesn't mean that every detail in that document is secret. For example, there were probably individuals named in the memos or some official but secret activities could have been described and these may be classified. But that's not what Mr. Comey shared with his friend. Instead, he told him about the loyalty pledge and Trump's demand for an official clearance by the FBI for any Russian involvement in his campaign. Those could hardly be classified as state secrets.

However, if you are correct and Mr. Comey and his friend committed crimes, then Trump should have his Department of Justice prosecute them. Trump claims their actions were illegal; he should put his money where his fat mouth is and go after them.

But he won't because he is so weak and cowardly and Mr. Comey didn't commit any crimes.

[bettyellen]

27. He testified that he wrote some memos up leaving out what would be classified to get around that.

I'm guessing he also wrote up more classified versions to be archived. But he was well aware that they'd say they were classified info so he worked to avoid that.

[onenote]

32. I think we're both trying to say the same thing

So long as Comey didn't include any classified information in the versions of the memos he distributed, he's fine (even if other versions of the memos contained classified information).

[PJMcK]

33. Another report I just read

Hi, onenote. I don't mean to keep hammering at this so please excuse me. Here's a link to a Wonkette article that explains how Mr. Comey structured his memos in such a way that he would be able to reveal them publicly without committing a crime:

https://wonkette.com/620047/trump-rage-bitching-about-james-comey-again-because-fox-friends-told-him-to

Apparently, Mr. Comey purposefully wrote one memo that he could release without violating any secrecy laws.

Overall, my point is that I think and hope that James Comey has covered himself in such a way that Trump and his minions will not be able to impeach his veracity.

Enjoy your evening.

[onenote]

37. Agree fully.

[onecaliberal]

12. None of the memos are classified. They. Ever were, Comey knew they might need to be made public.

[videohead5]

5. Why Leak It

When you can give it directly to the Russians in the oval office.

[PJMcK]

8. Hey, Trump!

If Director Comey acted illegally, prosecute him. You control the Department of Justice, you idiot.

Of course, Mr. Comey did not leak classified information. In fact, his own sworn testimony states that he shared the contents of his memos, not the memos themselves. One can be certain that Mr. Comey did not reveal the classified parts.

Furthermore, the man to whom Mr. Comey gave the information is an accomplished attorney and legal professor who would know that he could not receive classified information. He would know that if he possessed such information, he would be in legal jeopardy. He probably helped Mr. Comey determine the legal course of actions they could take to give the contents of the memos to a New York Times reporter.

Trump, the idiot, is up against really smart people and he doesn't realize it. He's never faced anything like what is building against him. His shuck-and-jive act won't distract or dissuade their investigations.

[writes3000]

19. I truly don't understand why people don't get this. No memos have actually been leaked.

Comey and his friend have discussed the existence of the memos but none have been shared outside of the government.

[PJMcK]

21. Exactly!

Director Comey shared Trump's demand for a loyalty oath and an FBI clearance of any wrongdoing with Russians during the campaign. He did not turn over any documents at all.

Facts are strange things to many people, apparently.

[forgotmylogin]

34. 45 seems to think anything he wants to keep private is "classified".

Like his freaking tax returns.

[B2G]

22. I thought he passed one to his friend

who gave it to the NYT.

Isn't that correct?

[PJMcK]

36. It wasn't a classified memo

Mr. Comey wrote it very carefully so he could release it if he had to. Good planning, I'd say.

[hatrack]

10. OMG! Totes ILLEGAL! Like, 100% Amazeballs Illegal! OMG OMG OMG!

[JHan]

26. Lololololol

I know it's not funny but he's so fucking juvenile.

[ancianita]

15. Putie's playbook: smear the integrity, increase distrust of the best intel/investigative part of US

government.

I wish Comey would sue him, but knowing Comey's background, he probably won't.

[bora13]

16. cuz a little birdie

told me so.
a birdie tweeted.
and tRump is defeated.

[mahina]

23. To distract from headlines about Uday and Russia, I gather?

I recall that 45 publicly disclosed information and Comey then released information about the same matter or event.

[MurrayDelph]

24. If this is about Donnie Jr's treason

1. No proof it came from Comey
2. No proof leaking this info, if it was leaked, was illegal
3. Did he just admit that it's true?

[VWolf]

25. Not just illegal .... SO illegal

Reminds me of that scene from A Few Good Men, where Tom Cruise berates Demi Moore for using the phrase "I STRONGLY object" in court.

[C_U_L8R]

28. President Valley Girl.

Grow up, Donald.

[xor]

38. Like. O.M.G

Totally. Bigly. Illegal!!



It will be nice once we can look back on this and laugh at the idiocy... Assuming we don't all die from it somehow.

[Kaleva]

29. Trump's DOJ not doing anything about it says otherwise.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

30. Looky over there

[leftyladyfrommo]

31. He wouldn't know illegal if you got him in the head with it.

Anything he doesn't like is illegal.

But none of the crooked stuff he has done is illegal.

He makes it up as he goes along.

[dchill]

39. Projection 101. It's an elective.