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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2017/jun/08/james-comey-testimony-senate-hearing-trump-russia-fbi
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| James Comey testimony: Trump had 'chilling effect' on Russia investigation – live | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 5.55pm BST | |
| 17:55 | |
| The committee leaders are speaking to the press. | |
| "This is nowhere near the end of the investigation," @senatorburr tells reporters after #ComeyHearing pic.twitter.com/YFToKS8Nj4 | |
| 5.54pm BST | |
| 17:54 | |
| Here’s the view from Drudge: | |
| DRUDGE just updated his headlines -- this is a good rundown of what narrative in pro-Trump universe will be like pic.twitter.com/BOc9264S6h | |
| 5.51pm BST | |
| 17:51 | |
| It's weird to see severs and bartenders hustling to get people their checks because a senate hearing has just ended. 🇺🇸 | |
| Me looking at Twiiter as both sides call #ComeyDay a victory — pic.twitter.com/fNsJG7rNRK | |
| 5.49pm BST | |
| 17:49 | |
| Here’s Comey interpreting the moment of awkward silence at dinner with Trump: | |
| Best part of hearing was Comey doing the trump eyebrow impression tbh pic.twitter.com/J721wNkTa1 | |
| 5.44pm BST | 5.44pm BST |
| 17:44 | 17:44 |
| What do you think? | What do you think? |
| 5.43pm BST | 5.43pm BST |
| 17:43 | 17:43 |
| Comey hearing concludes | Comey hearing concludes |
| Burr closes the hearing with a rousing call for more closed hearings away from the prying eyes of the public the senators have been elected to serve. | Burr closes the hearing with a rousing call for more closed hearings away from the prying eyes of the public the senators have been elected to serve. |
| Burr tells Comey thanks. | Burr tells Comey thanks. |
| Warner echoes the thanks. | Warner echoes the thanks. |
| “There’s still a lot of unanswered questions, and we’re going to get to the bottom of this,” he says. He says the Russian threat is “real and continuous”. | “There’s still a lot of unanswered questions, and we’re going to get to the bottom of this,” he says. He says the Russian threat is “real and continuous”. |
| Burr gavels it. Adjourned. | Burr gavels it. Adjourned. |
| 5.42pm BST | 5.42pm BST |
| 17:42 | 17:42 |
| McCain refers to a passage in Comey’s written testimony: | McCain refers to a passage in Comey’s written testimony: |
| He said he would do that and added, “Because I have been very loyal to you, very loyal; we had that thing you know.” I did not reply or ask him what he meant by “that thing.” I said only that the way to handle it was to have the White House Counsel call the Acting Deputy Attorney General. He said that was what he would do and the call ended | He said he would do that and added, “Because I have been very loyal to you, very loyal; we had that thing you know.” I did not reply or ask him what he meant by “that thing.” I said only that the way to handle it was to have the White House Counsel call the Acting Deputy Attorney General. He said that was what he would do and the call ended |
| McCain: Did that arouse your curiosity as to what ‘that thing’ was? | McCain: Did that arouse your curiosity as to what ‘that thing’ was? |
| Comey: Yes. | Comey: Yes. |
| McCain: Why didn’t you ask him? | McCain: Why didn’t you ask him? |
| Comey says he had an understanding of what was going on. | Comey says he had an understanding of what was going on. |
| McCain: “Yes but I think it would intensely arouse my curiosity if the president of the United States said ‘you know we had that thing’.” | McCain: “Yes but I think it would intensely arouse my curiosity if the president of the United States said ‘you know we had that thing’.” |
| Comey says “I’ve had some conversations with humans over the years” and his read on it was that as Trump searched his memory he realized that his request for a loyalty pledge from Comey had been turned down. | Comey says “I’ve had some conversations with humans over the years” and his read on it was that as Trump searched his memory he realized that his request for a loyalty pledge from Comey had been turned down. |
| McCain doesn’t really accept that. | McCain doesn’t really accept that. |
| McCain is getting gaveled. | McCain is getting gaveled. |
| 5.35pm BST | 5.35pm BST |
| 17:35 | 17:35 |
| McCain says he doesn’t understand how he can be done with the Clinton investigation but not the Russia investigation. “You reached the conclusion that there was no reason to bring charges against Mr Clinton.” | McCain says he doesn’t understand how he can be done with the Clinton investigation but not the Russia investigation. “You reached the conclusion that there was no reason to bring charges against Mr Clinton.” |
| Then McCain refers to “president Comey.” | Then McCain refers to “president Comey.” |
| Ouch. | Ouch. |
| 5.34pm BST | 5.34pm BST |
| 17:34 | 17:34 |
| Republican John McCain is up. He returns to Hillary Clinton’s emails. | Republican John McCain is up. He returns to Hillary Clinton’s emails. |
| McCain: | McCain: |
| I think that the American people have a whole lot of questions... obviously, she was a candidate for president at the time, so she was clearly involved in this whole... fake news... | I think that the American people have a whole lot of questions... obviously, she was a candidate for president at the time, so she was clearly involved in this whole... fake news... |
| Huh? We lost him. | Huh? We lost him. |
| Comey did too. “I’m a little confused,” he says. | Comey did too. “I’m a little confused,” he says. |
| 5.33pm BST | 5.33pm BST |
| 17:33 | 17:33 |
| New York drinkers watch Comey testimony | New York drinkers watch Comey testimony |
| Amanda Holpuch | Amanda Holpuch |
| At sideBar in New York City, the typical din of flirting young people and cheering sports fans was exchanged for a silent crowd, hooked on the words of senators Mark Warner, Richard Blumenthal and Susan Collins. | At sideBar in New York City, the typical din of flirting young people and cheering sports fans was exchanged for a silent crowd, hooked on the words of senators Mark Warner, Richard Blumenthal and Susan Collins. |
| The bar broadcast the hearing on 16 screens as bartenders hustled orders of avocado toast and bloody marys to patrons young and old. Some of the crowd was dressed in suits, others were dressed for a day out in the city. | The bar broadcast the hearing on 16 screens as bartenders hustled orders of avocado toast and bloody marys to patrons young and old. Some of the crowd was dressed in suits, others were dressed for a day out in the city. |
| More than two dozen people, excluding a handful of journalists, watched the hearing. Catherine Talese, a 49-year-old native New Yorker, said the sports bar setting did not reflect the gravity of the event. | More than two dozen people, excluding a handful of journalists, watched the hearing. Catherine Talese, a 49-year-old native New Yorker, said the sports bar setting did not reflect the gravity of the event. |
| “We’d prefer to have our president and government be just,” Talese said. “I don’t think we’re just enjoying politics as sports.” | “We’d prefer to have our president and government be just,” Talese said. “I don’t think we’re just enjoying politics as sports.” |
| Talese sat at the corner of the bar, discussing the testimony with the people sitting next to her, whom she had just met. She said she has always been interested in politics, but that interest escalated after Trump was elected president, which she said was “upsetting”. | Talese sat at the corner of the bar, discussing the testimony with the people sitting next to her, whom she had just met. She said she has always been interested in politics, but that interest escalated after Trump was elected president, which she said was “upsetting”. |
| Michael Ehrenreich and Robin Horne, who were visiting from Chicago and San Francisco respectively, sought out the bar to watch the hearing before checking-out the city’s tourist sites. | Michael Ehrenreich and Robin Horne, who were visiting from Chicago and San Francisco respectively, sought out the bar to watch the hearing before checking-out the city’s tourist sites. |
| “Trump is clearly inept and corrupt and I think he threatens a lot of people with his policies,” said Horne, 33, who cited Trump’s policies towards immigration and his attitude towards women as particularly concerning. | “Trump is clearly inept and corrupt and I think he threatens a lot of people with his policies,” said Horne, 33, who cited Trump’s policies towards immigration and his attitude towards women as particularly concerning. |
| “I think that there’s a little bit of schadenfreude – watching him squirm and be under this pressure is satisfying,” Horne said. | “I think that there’s a little bit of schadenfreude – watching him squirm and be under this pressure is satisfying,” Horne said. |
| Ehrenreich, 28, agreed: “Everybody is salivating for an opportunity to see him [Trump] taken down a notch.” | Ehrenreich, 28, agreed: “Everybody is salivating for an opportunity to see him [Trump] taken down a notch.” |
| The bar opened more than three hours early at the behest of tabloid news magazine Inside Edition, which hosted the event, which was called: “Covfefe and the City Hearing”, in reference to a typo in one of Trump’s recent tweets. | The bar opened more than three hours early at the behest of tabloid news magazine Inside Edition, which hosted the event, which was called: “Covfefe and the City Hearing”, in reference to a typo in one of Trump’s recent tweets. |
| It was one of a handful of bars across the city broadcasting the hearing. | It was one of a handful of bars across the city broadcasting the hearing. |
| 5.33pm BST | 5.33pm BST |
| 17:33 | 17:33 |
| Comey judges circumstances of his firing to be 'a very big deal' | Comey judges circumstances of his firing to be 'a very big deal' |
| Comey: | Comey: |
| “It’s my judgment that I was fired because of the Russia investigation... the endeavor was to change the way the Russia investigation was being conducted. That is a very big deal, not just because it’s me...” but because of the crucial independent nature of FBI investigations. | “It’s my judgment that I was fired because of the Russia investigation... the endeavor was to change the way the Russia investigation was being conducted. That is a very big deal, not just because it’s me...” but because of the crucial independent nature of FBI investigations. |
| Comey continues: | Comey continues: |
| If any Americans were part of helping the Russians do that to us, that is a very big deal, and I’m confident if that is the case that director Mueller will find that evidence. | If any Americans were part of helping the Russians do that to us, that is a very big deal, and I’m confident if that is the case that director Mueller will find that evidence. |
| Reed asks Comey whether Trump’s tweets about tapes was a threat. | Reed asks Comey whether Trump’s tweets about tapes was a threat. |
| “I’m not going to sit here and try to interpret the president’s tweets,” Comey says. | “I’m not going to sit here and try to interpret the president’s tweets,” Comey says. |
| 5.29pm BST | 5.29pm BST |
| 17:29 | 17:29 |
| Comey describes the terms of his firing as he understands them: | Comey describes the terms of his firing as he understands them: |
| I know I was fired because something about the way I was conducting the Russia investigation was some way putting pressure on him, was some way irritating him. | I know I was fired because something about the way I was conducting the Russia investigation was some way putting pressure on him, was some way irritating him. |
| 5.27pm BST | 5.27pm BST |
| 17:27 | 17:27 |
| Now up: Democrat Jack Reed of Rhode Island. | Now up: Democrat Jack Reed of Rhode Island. |
| He’s exploring Comey’s decision not to state publicly that Trump wasn’t under investigation. Was Comey concern that Trump might be entangled? | He’s exploring Comey’s decision not to state publicly that Trump wasn’t under investigation. Was Comey concern that Trump might be entangled? |
| Comey says: In theory... the concern was... if you’re looking at potential collusion between the campaign and Russia, logically.. the person at the head of the campaign” may be implicated. It wasn’t his concern but a colleague’s concern. | Comey says: In theory... the concern was... if you’re looking at potential collusion between the campaign and Russia, logically.. the person at the head of the campaign” may be implicated. It wasn’t his concern but a colleague’s concern. |
| 5.23pm BST | 5.23pm BST |
| 17:23 | 17:23 |
| Cornyn, by the way, is back to the Clinton emails investigation. | Cornyn, by the way, is back to the Clinton emails investigation. |