Disgraced fired FBI director James Comey claimed on Twitter Monday that he was booked to go on “Fox and Friends” Tuesday morning to discuss the newly released IG report, but Fox cancelled his appearance after the report came out. Fox News, however, disputed that claim, saying the former G-man was not booked and was never confirmed to appear on the program.
“I offered to go on Fox & Friends to answer all questions. I can’t change their viewers on Donald Trump but hoped to give them some actual facts about the FBI. They booked me for tomorrow at 8 am. They just cancelled. Must have read the report,” Comey tweeted.
FYI: I offered to go on Fox & Friends to answer all questions. I can’t change their viewers on Donald Trump but hoped to give them some actual facts about the FBI. They booked me for tomorrow at 8 am. They just cancelled. Must have read the report.
— James Comey (@Comey) December 9, 2019
Comey seemed to be suggesting that the IG’s findings of the FBI’s handling of four FISA applications and Russia probe (which upended the lives of numerous Trump campaign advisers—especially Carter Page) made him look good. It didn’t.
Well said… 🤣
“Although it took two years, the truth is finally out.” — @Comey, 12/9/19
HEADLINE: 'Screwed up at every level': NBC's Pete Williams blasts FBI following release of FISA report https://t.co/VJL2D4phEN
— Kevin McCarthy (@kevinomccarthy) December 9, 2019
A Fox spokesperson told CNBC that Comey’s representatives “reached out to us to be booked on Fox and Friends” but “Comey was not booked and was never confirmed to appear on Fox & Friends.”
Several Fox News personalities came forward on Twitter to invite Comey onto their shows:
Why don't you join @MorningsMaria @FoxBusiness or @SundayFutures @FoxNews we'd love to have you. Lmk
— Maria Bartiromo (@MariaBartiromo) December 9, 2019
We have reached out to your staff and invited you to come on tonight. Hope you will join us. @TheStoryFNC https://t.co/z0o9Mz43yE
— Martha MacCallum (@marthamaccallum) December 9, 2019
We’d love to have you back on @SpecialReport Mr Comey – live or pretape. I have read the report. Just DM me. https://t.co/QzL7ydtQ7g
— Bret Baier (@BretBaier) December 9, 2019
As the report was released, Comey took a victory lap in a Washington Post op-ed:
“Although it took two years, the truth is finally out,” he wrote.
“There was no illegal wiretapping, there were no informants inserted into the campaign, there was no ‘spying’ on the Trump campaign,” Comey wrote deceitfully.
Of course, the FBI used and mismanaged multiple informants who contacted members of the Trump campaign in an effort to entrap them. And of course they were spying on the Trump campaign through the use of informants and wiretaps.
Horowitz identified 17 serious problems in the three surveillance applications to justify the surveillance of former Trump Campaign adviser Carter Page. Although the report details a slew of shady inaccuracies, actions and omissions by the FBI, the IG found no evidence of political bias in the FBI’s probe of the Trump campaign and that the investigation’s origins were properly predicated.
“What they were doing and what they would’ve done if I didn’t make a certain move, a certain move that was a very important move because it would have been even worse if that’s possible,” President Trump said after he was briefed on the report’s findings.
Speaking at the White House after being briefed on the report’s findings, Trump said the FBI “fabricated evidence” and “lied to the courts.”
“This was something that we can never allow to happen again,” Trump said. “The report actually and especially when you look in to it and the details of the report are far worse than anything I would have even imagined. What they were doing and what they would’ve done if I didn’t make a certain move, a certain move that was a very important move because it would have been even worse if that’s possible.”
“And they might’ve been able to succeed, this was an overthrow of government, this was an attempted overthrow and a lot of people were in on it and they got caught. They got caught red-handed and I look forward to the Durham report, which is coming out in the not-too-distant future,” he continued. “Which is this information plus, plus, plus. An incredible thing that happened and going to put this down as one of our great achievements because what we found and what we saw never, ever should this happen again in our country.”