President discusses Comey dismissal with journalist

President Donald Trump talked with NBC News Anchor Lester Holt about issues around the FBI.

The president insisted that he had decided to fire the FBI Director James Comey before getting recommendations from the attorney general and deputy attorney general.

The president said of Comey, “He’s a showboat, he’s a grandstander.”

As for the timing, Trump said, “There is no good time to do it.”

In his letter to Comey, Trump thanked him three times for assuring the president he was not under investigation.

Holt pressed the president hard on when and how Comey had told the president this.

“But he’s given sworn testimony that there is an ongoing investigation into the Trump campaign and possible collusion with the Russian government,” Holt told the president. “You were the centerpiece of the Trump campaign. So, was he being truthful when he says you weren’t under investigation?”

President Trump responded with confidence, “I know one thing. I know that I’m not under investigation. Me, personally. I’m not talking about campaigns. I’m not talking about anything else. I’m not under investigation.”