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President Trump Escalates Criticism of F.B.I. Role in Russia Inquiry President Trump Escalates Criticism of F.B.I. Role in Russia Inquiry
(about 2 hours later)
WASHINGTON — President Trump escalated his criticism of the F.B.I. on Friday over its investigation of possible links between Russia and his campaign, calling the inquiry a “very sad thing to watch.” WASHINGTON — President Trump escalated his criticism of the F.B.I. on Friday over its investigation of possible links between Russia and his campaign, adding a new round of complaints to a growing conservative effort to discredit the inquiry.
“It’s a shame what’s happened with the F.B.I.,” the president told reporters before departing for an event at the F.B.I. Academy in Quantico, Va. “It’s a very sad thing to watch.” “It’s a shame what’s happened with the F.B.I.,” the president told reporters on the South Lawn of the White House before departing for an event at the F.B.I. Academy in Quantico, Va. “It’s a very sad thing to watch.”
Without citing specifics, Mr. Trump said there was an extraordinary “level of anger” at the F.B.I. over the investigation. He labeled “disgraceful” recently released text messages between one of the agents on the investigation and a lawyer for the bureau who were critical of him. The special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, removed the agent from the investigation as soon as he learned of the texts. Without citing specifics, Mr. Trump described an extraordinary “level of anger” at the F.B.I. over the investigation. He labeled “disgraceful” recently released text messages between one of the agents on the investigation and a lawyer for the bureau who were critical of him. The special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, removed the agent from the investigation when he learned of the texts.
The president also said it was premature to discuss whether he would pardon Michael T. Flynn, his former national security adviser who pleaded guilty this month to lying to the F.B.I. in connection with the investigation. Mr. Trump’s latest attacks on the F.B.I. kept alive a rare public feud between a president and the nation’s premier law enforcement agency, friction that could be seen as Mr. Trump undermining faith in the integrity of an inquiry he has long derided as a “witch hunt.” They also came amid a campaign by congressional Republicans, conservative media and the president’s own lawyers to paint the inquiry as a partisan effort to weaken the president.
He did not repeat his criticism at the F.B.I. Academy event, a ceremony to honor local police officers and sheriffs who had received specialized training. Mr. Trump sat alongside the attorney general, Jeff Sessions, and the F.B.I.’s director, Christopher A. Wray. “I have nothing to do with Russia,” Mr. Trump said. “Everybody knows it. That was a Democrat hoax. It was an excuse for losing the election and it should never have been this way, where they spent all these millions of dollars.”
But his earlier remarks kept alive a rare public feud between a president and the nation’s premier law enforcement agency, friction that could be seen as Mr. Trump undermining faith in the integrity of the investigation. He also criticized the F.B.I.’s handling of the investigation into Hillary Clinton and her use of a private email server, calling it a “scam.” The Justice Department closed that case without filing charges.
Mr. Trump has shown open disdain for the F.B.I., saying that the standing of the nation’s premier law enforcement agency was the “worst in history” and its reputation was in “tatters.” “They found tremendous things on the other side,” Mr. Trump said. “When you look at the Hillary Clinton investigation, it was — I’ve been saying for a long time — that was a rigged system.”
Last week, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, said that the president supported Mr. Wray and rank-and-file agents — but that he had issues with top officials who served under the previous F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, whom the president fired in May. The president’s constant attacks have frustrated F.B.I. agents who see him as diminishing a proud organization and eroding its trust with the public. Other agents dismiss the president’s comments as empty rhetoric, and many hope that Mr. Trump stops dragging the agency into the headlines and accusing it of being political.
Mr. Wray, in testimony to Congress recently, strongly defended the F.B.I., telling its 35,000 agents and support staff that he was “inspired by example after example of professionalism and dedication to justice demonstrated around the bureau.” “The agents just want to be viewed as being referees who call balls and strikes and follow the evidence,” said James A. Gagliano, who spent more than two decades in the F.B.I. “The rank and file just want to return to normalcy. They want to dispel the notion that America should not trust its premier law enforcement agency.”
But the president’s criticism was notable because of his long-stated belief that the Justice Department investigation into links between his campaign and Russia was a “witch hunt.” Democrats were also quick to defend the bureau. “The men and women of the F.B.I. are among the most professional and committed public servants in our nation, and the president’s comments this morning are gravely concerning,” Senator Chris Coons, Democrat of Delaware and member of the Judiciary Committee, said in an email response to questions.
“American law enforcement officers, including those serving at the F.B.I. and training at the FBI Academy where President Trump spoke, do not serve him personally, but serve all of us,” he added.
The president also said on Friday that it was premature to discuss whether he would pardon Michael T. Flynn, his former national security adviser who pleaded guilty this month to lying to the F.B.I. in connection with the investigation.
“I don’t want to talk about pardons for Michael Flynn yet,” Mr. Trump said. “We’ll see what happens. Let’s see. I can say this: When you look at what’s gone on with the F.B.I. and with the Justice Department, people are very, very angry.”
The president had said after Mr. Flynn’s guilty plea that the reputation of the F.B.I. was “in tatters” and its standing with the public was the “worst in history.”
Christopher A. Wray, the F.B.I. director, defended the agency in testimony to Congress and in a letter to nearly 37,000 agents and support staff, saying that he was “inspired by example after example of professionalism and dedication to justice demonstrated around the bureau.”
Mr. Trump did not repeat his criticism at the F.B.I. Academy event, a ceremony to honor local police officers and sheriffs who had received specialized training. He sat alongside Mr. Wray and the attorney general, Jeff Sessions. At the end of the event, Mr. Trump even thanked the F.B.I.