0:06
- ABC News
- August 29, 2019
DOJ IG finds Comey violated policy on Trump memos
The report examined Comey's decision to reveal the memos after his firing.
0:06
![\"PHOTO:](\"http://a.abcnews.com/images/Politics/donald-trump-white-house-lawn-rtr-jc-190828_hpMain_4x3t_384.jpg\")
President Trump tweeted his reaction to the report on Thursday afternoon, saying Comey \"should be ashamed of himself!\"
Perhaps never in the history of our Country has someone been more thoroughly disgraced and excoriated than James Comey in the just released Inspector General’s Report. He should be ashamed of himself!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 29, 2019
Earlier in the day, Comey tweeted his reaction to the report, calling out \"those who defamed me\" by suggesting his handling of the memos would result in his prosecution.
DOJ IG \"found no evidence that Comey or his attorneys released any of the classified information contained in any of the memos to members of the media.\" I don’t need a public apology from those who defamed me, but a quick message with a “sorry we lied about you” would be nice.
— James Comey (@Comey) August 29, 2019
And to all those who’ve spent two years talking about me “going to jail” or being a “liar and a leaker”—ask yourselves why you still trust people who gave you bad info for so long, including the president.
— James Comey (@Comey) August 29, 2019
Comey has said he drafted the seven memos detailing his interactions with President Trump out of concern that Trump might lie about their interactions.
In the months before his eventual firing, Comey documented several instances that became key episodes in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into whether President Trump obstructed justice.
One such memo recounted a private Oval Office meeting during which Comey said Trump urged him to drop the FBI's investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
Following his firing, Comey told Congress he revealed his memos in order to prompt the appointment of a special counsel, and after a tweet from President Trump that said Comey \"better hope that there are no 'tapes' of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!\"
The OIG determined that disclosure, as well as Comey's continued possession of the memos after his firing, amounted to a violation of FBI and DOJ policy.
The inspector general's office argued that Comey's actions set a \"dangerous example for the over 35,000 current FBI employees—and the many thousands more former FBI employees\" who have been entrusted with classified information.
\"Even when these employees believe that their most strongly-held personal convictions might be served by an unauthorized disclosure, the FBI depends on them not to disclose sensitive information,\" the report said. \"Former Director Comey failed to live up to this responsibility.\"
Inspector General Horowitz is expected to release in the coming months a more extensive report examining the origins of the investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election.
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