2 winners and 1 concern after James Comey’s senate hearing
Jun 8, 2017, 2:01 PM | Updated: 3:08 pm
(AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)
Americans are left with two winners, and one concern, according to Conservative talk show host Michael Medved, after James Comey testified Thursday.
“The two big winners, and I think they were equally big winners, were James Comey and Donald J. Trump,” Medved said.
RELATED: Comey testifies that President Trump is a liar
Comey, the former FBI director who President Trump fired, testified in front of a Senate intelligence committee Thursday. The testimony offered little material to those hoping to impeach Trump. There were questions of whether the president obstructed justice or put pressure on the FBI to halt investigations into his administration’s ties to Russia. But Comey did not provide any damning testimony, according to Medved. Comey did say that the president lied about details of his job and the FBI, and that he felt he was fired to affect the Russia investigation.
“President Trump was not guilty of any crime,” Medved said. “…What he was guilty of was totally mishandling this entire matter of James Comey. If he was going to fire him, fire him right away … for goodness sake, the way the president handled this was terrible.”
“Everybody is looking for the ‘I’ word, for impeachment or criminal violations,” he said. “None of that was there. The president was cleared of that.”
“Why was James Comey the winner?” Medved added. “I think he came across as entirely credible. Particularly when he was talking about this matter of releasing any tapes that may exist. One of the questions the White House will have to answer is if tapes exist. If they don’t, say so. If they do, release them … Comey said, ‘Go ahead and release those tapes’ … those tapes may mean that the president may look bad, but he will not look criminal.”
Concern: A war on James Comey
But while Comey and Trump may walk away with a sigh of relief, there is a big concern that has Medved quite worried. Shortly after Comey’s testimony, Trump’s personal attorney held a press conference delivering highly critical statements against Comey.
“Basically declaring war on James Comey,” Medved said. “Saying he was guilty of leaking and the White House is going after him aggressively. This is a mistake.”
“Whether you’re a president or in private life, don’t make unnecessary enemies,” he said. “Don’t pick fights that you don’t need to fight. There is no reason to make James Comey an enemy.”
The attorney’s statements were the “worst thing” to happen to the White House on Thursday, according to Medved.
“Please Mr. President, please for the sake of your legacy, for the sake of your success, for the sake of the country – move on,” he said. “Declare a victory. You just dodged a bullet … there is no grounds for impeachment. The Democrats will complain and make campaign ads, but they will do that anyway.”
“Let’s go forward to tax reform, to rescuing Americans from the collapse of Obamacare,” Medved said. “Let’s go forward with strengthening, not weakening our alliances. Be a positive president. But don’t make war on James Comey.”