Trump threatens fired FBI director with mention of “tapes”

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Trump threatens fired FBI director with mention of "tapes"FBI Director James Comey testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 3, 2017, before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing: “Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.” (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The controversy over U.S. President Donald Trump’s firing of his FBI director continues to consume Washington, D.C. Defending his decision for a second day on social media, Trump created more questions as to his motives for sacking James Comey.

CGTN’s Nathan King reports on the scandal.

Comey had been in charge of investigating possible collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia.

The U.S. President took to twitter early Friday to once again defend his abrupt firing of FBI director James Comey . “James Comey better hope that there are no “tapes” of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press,” read the message.

It’s an apparent reaction to press reports that Trump hosted a private dinner with Comey at the White House back in January at which Trump asked for his loyalty-according to U.S. media Comey promised only honesty.

Trump’s communications team are embattled after days of contradictory and often provably false statements refused to comment on their bosses latest offensive on social media or on the existence of any possible recordings in the White House.

And in a TV interview, the U.S. president also created more problems for himself by seeming to link Comey’s firing with the FBI probe into his campaigns possible collusion with Russia during the 2016 Presidential campaign.

He is still calling all the allegations false, but the timing of the firing of the FBI chief is raising eyebrows and Friday Trump’s political supporters were conspicuous by their silence. Few if any defended his latest comments.

And in the middle of this media maelstrom, Trump’s lawyers issued a letter that said he did not have any financial ties to Russia with a “few exceptions.” That has led to more calls for the President to release his tax returns.

It’s something all modern U.S. Presidents have done except, of course, Donald Trump. Once again, critics are saying this latest political crisis is entirely of the U.S. President’s own making.


Atiba Madyun on the Trump’s conflicting story on firing FBI director Comey

To talk more on the Trump administration and the firing of James Comey, CGTN’s Elaine Reyes spoke with Atiba Madyun, founder of The Madyun Group, a government relations firm. He is also a contributor to The Huffington Post.