12-03-2017, 10:26 AM
May 9, 2017
President Trump fires FBI Director James Comey.
May 10, 2017
Trump met with top Russian diplomats in the White House, during which he reportedly revealed classified information. According to a later New York Times report, the president also told them that day, "I just fired the head of the FBI. He was crazy, a real nut job. I faced great pressure because of Russia. That’s taken off."
May 11, 2017
In an interview with NBC News, Trump called out Comey publicly: "Look he’s a showboat, he’s a grandstander. The FBI has been in turmoil. You know that, I know that. Everybody knows that. You take a look at the FBI a year ago, it was in virtual turmoil – less than a year ago. It hasn’t recovered from that." He also said that the Russia investigation was indeed on his mind when firing Comey.
Trump told NBC's Lester Holt that he said to himself, in making the decision to fire the FBI director: "You know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story. It's an excuse by the Democrats for having lost an election that they should have won."
May 16, 2017
News breaks that Trump had asked Comey to close the investigation into Michael Flynn, the resigned national security adviser back in February. Comey kept detailed memos of his conversations with Trump, including of a dinner in which the president reportedly said, "I hope you can let this go."
May 17, 2017
The Justice Department taps former FBI director Robert Mueller as special counsel to lead an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Sources tell the New York Times that Trump’s team knew Flynn was under investigation for secretly working as a paid lobbyist for Turkey during the presidential campaign.
May 22, 2017
Flynn tells the Senate Intelligence Committee he will invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in declining to provide the committee documents related to its investigation into collusion between associates of Trump's campaign and the Russian government.
President Trump fires FBI Director James Comey.
May 10, 2017
Trump met with top Russian diplomats in the White House, during which he reportedly revealed classified information. According to a later New York Times report, the president also told them that day, "I just fired the head of the FBI. He was crazy, a real nut job. I faced great pressure because of Russia. That’s taken off."
May 11, 2017
In an interview with NBC News, Trump called out Comey publicly: "Look he’s a showboat, he’s a grandstander. The FBI has been in turmoil. You know that, I know that. Everybody knows that. You take a look at the FBI a year ago, it was in virtual turmoil – less than a year ago. It hasn’t recovered from that." He also said that the Russia investigation was indeed on his mind when firing Comey.
Trump told NBC's Lester Holt that he said to himself, in making the decision to fire the FBI director: "You know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story. It's an excuse by the Democrats for having lost an election that they should have won."
May 16, 2017
News breaks that Trump had asked Comey to close the investigation into Michael Flynn, the resigned national security adviser back in February. Comey kept detailed memos of his conversations with Trump, including of a dinner in which the president reportedly said, "I hope you can let this go."
May 17, 2017
The Justice Department taps former FBI director Robert Mueller as special counsel to lead an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Sources tell the New York Times that Trump’s team knew Flynn was under investigation for secretly working as a paid lobbyist for Turkey during the presidential campaign.
May 22, 2017
Flynn tells the Senate Intelligence Committee he will invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in declining to provide the committee documents related to its investigation into collusion between associates of Trump's campaign and the Russian government.