# Comey’s Memos **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 20, 2018, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752 "2018-04-20T03:50:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/21 "2018-04-20T18:26:30Z")
> [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > Sorry, perhaps I wasn’t clear enough with my question. Is it a requirement, or at least a standard practice, for an FBI Director to write memos about his encounters with his boss? If so, have memos like these from former FBI Directors ever been released in the past? > > Also, it strikes me that Comey wasn’t doing much to help Trump. It doesn’t appear that he even said anything as simple as “We can’t do that”, or “it doesn’t work that way”. It’s almost like he was being a psychologist and in awe that a Washington outsider has no clue about standard protocol and what is or isn’t acceptable. > > I’m about as far from being a fan of Trump as possible, but I can see how these memos can be interpreted as Comey being negligent towards , or even sabotaging Trump to some extent. > > For example, it I take on a new job, I would expect those that report to me to be open about how things operate, who to go to/who to avoid, etc. Comey appeared to be the type to hold back important information, while secretly giggling in the corner at his boss’s missteps. If your new boss comes in, and immediately starts asking you to help cover up his embezzling that he is planning on doing to your company, is taking notes about that a form of sabotaging, holding back information, and secretly giggling? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/22 "2018-04-20T18:31:25Z")
My understanding is that an FBI Director generally doesn’t act as an advisor to the president and doesn’t guide him on what is legal and what isn’t, but rather keeps at an arm’s length and investigates crimes. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/23 "2018-04-20T18:38:24Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > TWEET! Goddammit, TWEET! > > There. Thanks. I feel better now. The universe is back in balance… ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/24 "2018-04-20T18:39:47Z")
According to those same memos, Priebus violated tradition by asking whether there was a FISA warrant out on Flynn. Not Trump himself, but a close part of his team, and he definitely should have known better, being a political insider type. That would have set alarm bells off in my head, even if none of the rest of it had happened. Taken in total with Trump’s fumbling attempts to end the investigation and his famous lack of connection with truth, I’d have seen no other option than to write everything down as soon as possible. (Which is literally what Comey did, writing notes in the car on the way from the meeting.) ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/25 "2018-04-20T20:07:03Z")
> [@Greathouse](#): > > When I get a new boss I kind of expect him to know how to do his fucking job. Well, there’s knowing how to do your job - and I’m in no way saying that Trump even had a clue - and there’s navigating the particular accepted rules and conventions of the specific company, division, department that you will be running. However, based on some of the other responses, it does appear that at least the FBI Director is held to a different standard than the others that serve “at the pleasure of the president.” ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/26 "2018-04-20T20:22:47Z")
> [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > Well, there’s knowing how to do your job - and I’m in no way saying that Trump even had a clue - and there’s navigating the particular accepted rules and conventions of the specific company, division, department that you will be running. However, based on some of the other responses, it does appear that at least the FBI Director is held to a different standard than the others that serve “at the pleasure of the president.” I think it’s much, much more than that. It’s not simply that Trump, for example, called Comey, and Comey was thinking “Trump should really be calling his A.G., who can then call me if he needs to”, although that was probably part of it. I think you have to also account for the fact that Comey was likely actively involved in the day-to-day progress of the Russia investigation (given its huge importance) and probably already had his suspicions about Trump’s level of involvement. Once you combine that knowledge with Trump’s behavior (repeated efforts to diminish or curtail the investigation), I think you explain Comey’s memos. Meaning, Comey was alarmed not simply because Trump didn’t know what to do, but because there were rumors that Trump was possibly involved in a criminal conspiracy and, unbelievably, **he kept acting like it was true**. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/27 "2018-04-20T20:25:44Z")
> [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > … > I’m about as far from being a fan of Trump as possible, but I can see how these memos can be interpreted as Comey being negligent towards , or even sabotaging Trump to some extent. > > … He was just covering his ass. He met the new Pres. and thought: “Holy shit, I’d better cover my ass.” The director of the FBI felt like he oughta cover his ass when dealing with this dude. He thought it immediately. (And he was right about that.) MAGA ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/28 "2018-04-20T22:02:05Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > To hear Republicans tell it, these memos prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that there was no collusion nor obstruction of justice and that Donald is so innocent he makes Jesus look like Satan. In reality, there is little that we didn’t know before except perhaps his obsession with the pee-pee tape and how he asked Comey to prove that it didn’t happen. Yes, the memos either provide additional evidence of misconduct by Trump or are neutral (in that their contents were basically known before the release). But the GOP doesn’t really care that the memos don’t support their position, because _they can say the memos support their position, in full confidence that the base won’t question them._ All the House Republicans really wanted was ‘a big deal thing that happened.’ They could then claim that the big deal release of the memos Totally Clears Trump. A claim like that wouldn’t work as well in the absence of a big deal thing (such as the memos-release). If Devin Nunes tried to say “my uncle wrote down some stuff on this napkin from Waffle House that totally clears the president,” it just wouldn’t go over as well as ‘these memos [that the entire nation are focused on] totally clear the president.’ It doesn’t matter a whit that the memos do _not_ clear the president, of course. All that matters is the chance to make the claim–a claim the base will never examine nor dispute. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/29 "2018-04-20T22:05:23Z")
I’m quite sure Comey had heard, even before the election, that Trump’s own attorneys never met with him except in pairs [due to Trump’s penchant for lying about what was said in the meeting after](https://www.buzzfeed.com/kendalltaggart/trumps-lawyer-we-met-with-him-in-pairs-to-avoid-lies?utm_term=.vdMrrrY7L#.hlPkkkJ5W). Comey simply knew with whom he was dealing and took steps to protect himself and the integrity of the meetings. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/30 "2018-04-20T22:08:48Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > He was just covering his ass. He met the new Pres. and thought: “Holy shit, I’d better cover my ass.” The director of the FBI felt like he oughta cover his ass when dealing with this dude. He thought it immediately. (And he was right about that.) MAGA Hilariously, the House Republicans cite Comey’s decision to document his meetings with Trump–the necessity of which had been pointed out by Trump’s own attorneys before the election!\*–as “proof” that Comey was “biased” against Trump: > [@](#): > > The memos also make certain what has become increasingly clear of late: former Director Comey has at least two different standards in his interactions with others. He chose not to memorialize conversations with President Obama, Attorney General Lynch, Secretary Clinton, Andrew McCabe or others, but he immediately began to memorialize conversations with President Trump. [https://intelligence.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=879](https://intelligence.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=879) They seem unaware of the ironic nature of their ‘outrage.’ \*[Trump’s lawyers testified they met with him in pairs to ensure he wouldn’t lie about their meetings - Daily Kos](https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/10/6/1578559/-Trump-s-lawyers-testified-they-met-with-him-in-pairs-to-ensure-he-wouldn-t-lie-about-their-meetings) Article title: “Trump’s lawyers testified they met with him in pairs to ensure he wouldn’t lie about their meetings” eta: overlapping citations with Aspenglow’s post; the Buzzfeed and DailyKos articles do both contain useful information. Both were published October 6, 2016. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/31 "2018-04-20T22:56:26Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > You’ve had bosses? I always imagined you worked in a commune or sold fruit by the side of the road. If its no extra trouble, could you imagine me witty and good-looking as well? ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2018, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/32 "2018-04-20T23:39:34Z")
My observation is, HOLY HELL, can you imagine a job where you had to do stuff and then DOCUMENT what you just did/said to that degree?! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2018, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/33 "2018-04-21T02:36:16Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > If its no extra trouble, could you imagine me witty and good-looking as well? Mentally speaking, it’s actually a shitload of extra trouble. Sorry! ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2018, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/34 "2018-04-21T02:54:52Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > My observation is, HOLY HELL, can you imagine a job where you had to do stuff and then DOCUMENT what you just did/said to that degree?! :smack: Sure. I’m doing it now. And Comey has to know that Trump is basically nothing more than a crook. I work for county government. The staff is working on updating the physical addresses of residential structures that the census has. It’s called LUCA (Local Update of Census Addresses). The Census Bureau has a 180 page document to help explain the process (this is the third decennial census I’ve done this for). And no, it does not cover everything. I have called the ‘help’ line three times to get clarification. And they are not always sure. Yes, I make a contemporaneous note about what was said, and the ‘answer’ to my question. Sometimes it’s a very good idea to document things. There are about 500 staff hours into this project so far. ---
**Author:** ![UnwittingAmericans](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/d9b06d/32.png) [@UnwittingAmericans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UnwittingAmericans)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2018, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/35 "2018-04-22T14:03:21Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > But the GOP doesn’t really care that the memos don’t support their position, because _they can say the memos support their position, in full confidence that the base won’t question them._ > > All the House Republicans really wanted was ‘a big deal thing that happened.’ They could then claim that the big deal release of the memos Totally Clears Trump. > > A claim like that wouldn’t work as well in the absence of a big deal thing (such as the memos-release). If Devin Nunes tried to say “my uncle wrote down some stuff on this napkin from Waffle House that totally clears the president,” it just wouldn’t go over as well as ‘these memos [that the entire nation are focused on] totally clear the president.’ > > It doesn’t matter a whit that the memos do _not_ clear the president, of course. All that matters is the chance to make the claim–a claim the base will never examine nor dispute. This is correct. At least the House Repubs are for now are adhering to the recent tradition of gaining possession of documents before lying about what they say. I don’t expect that to last much longer, pretty soon we’ll be back to the days of holding up blank pieces of paper and saying “I have in my hands a list…” ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2018, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/36 "2018-04-22T20:54:07Z")
> [@UnwittingAmericans](#): > > This is correct. At least the House Repubs are for now are adhering to the recent tradition of gaining possession of documents before lying about what they say. I don’t expect that to last much longer, pretty soon we’ll be back to the days of **holding up blank pieces of paper and saying “I have in my hands a list…”** Yes—it _is_ an old tactic, isn’t it? And one that we’d hoped we’d seen the last of. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2018, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752/37 "2018-04-22T22:18:09Z")
> [@Greathouse](#): > > NOBODY grows dope in Nipples, MN! Correction: EVERYBODY grows dope in Nipples, MN. But it’s ditch weed and sucks, but it’s free. > [@Dinsdale](#): > > My observation is, HOLY HELL, can you imagine a job where you had to do stuff and then DOCUMENT what you just did/said to that degree?! :smack: Anybody who bills for his time has to. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comey-s-memos/812752.md?page=1)