Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — The top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee said that President Donald Trump told her he asked top Justice Department officials to review the FBI, which he called a “mess,” before he received a report that led to the firing of FBI Director James Comey on Tuesday.
“When I talked to the president last night, he said, ‘The department’s a mess, I asked [Deputy Attorney General Rod] Rosenstein and [Attorney General Jeff] Sessions to look into it, Rosenstein sent me a memo. I accepted the recommendation to fire him,'” Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, recalled to reporters Wednesday at the Capitol.
Trump’s comments to Feinstein appear to undercut claims from White House officials that the decision to put together a memo on Comey’s handling of the Clinton email investigation and recommendation to fire Comey originated with the Department of Justice — claims the White House reiterated in Wednesday’s briefing.
“That was a DOJ decision,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer told reporters Tuesday evening about the review of Comey’s conduct, which was conducted by Rosenstein.
When asked if Trump instructed Rosenstein to conduct the Comey review, Vice President Mike Pence said Rosenstein “came to work, sat down and made the recommendation.”
“He brought that recommendation to the president,” Pence said on Capitol Hill Wednesday.
Feinstein was one of several congressional leaders Trump informed of his plans to fire Director Comey.
A spokesperson for Pence did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Feinstein’s recollection of the president’s remarks.
Asked about the California Democrat’s comments, White House principal deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Trump had been considering letting Comey go, but that “there was no request by him to have a review at the Department of Justice.”
Sanders said Rosenstein “absolutely” decided to review Comey’s performance on his own, but was asked to put his recommendation into writing in a Monday meeting with Trump and Sessions.
Copyright © 2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.