A few moments later, the President said, ”I need loyalty, I expect loyalty."
I didn't move, speak, or change my facial expression in any way during the
awkward silence that followed. We simply looked at each other in silence. The
conversation then moved on, but he returned to the subject near the end of our
dinner.
At one point, I explained why it was so important that the FBI and the
Department of Justice be independent of the White House. I said it was a paradox:
Throughout history, some Presidents have decided that because ”problems" come
from Justice, they should try to hold the Department close. But blurring those
boundaries ultimately makes the problems worse by undermining public trust in
the institutions and their work.
Near the end of our dinner, the President returned to the subject of my job,
saying he was very glad I wanted to stay, adding that he had heard great things
4
about me from Jim Mattis, Jeff Sessions, and many others. He then said, ”I need
loyalty." I replied, ”You will always get honesty from me." He paused and then
said, ”That's what I want, honest loyalty." I paused, and then said, ”You will get
that from me." As I wrote in the memo I created immediately after the dinner, it is
possible we understood the phrase ”honest loyalty" differently, but I decided it
wouldn't be productive to push it further. The term – honest loyalty – had helped
end a very awkward conversation and my explanations had made clear what he
should expect
