Theres no indication Comey violated the law. Trump may be about to.
President Trumps declaration that the Thursday testimony of former FBI director James B. Comey was a total and complete vindication despite so many false statements and lies was the sort of brashly triumphant and loosely-grounded-in-reality statement weve come to expect from the commander in chief. It was news that came out a bit later, news about plans to file a complaint against Comey for a revelation he made during that Senate Intelligence Committee hearing meeting, that may end up being more damaging to the president.
CNN first reported that Trumps outside counsel, Marc Kasowitz, plans to file complaints with the inspector general of the Justice Department and the Senate Judiciary Committee about Comeys testimony. At issue was Comeys revelation that he provided a memo documenting a conversation with Trump to a friend to be shared with the New York Times.
As the news broke, I was on the phone with Stephen Kohn, partner at a law firm focused on whistleblower protection. Wed been talking about where the boundaries lay for Comey in what he could and couldnt do with the information about his conversations with the president. Kohns response to the story about Kasowitz, though, was visceral.
Here is my position on that: Frivolous grandstanding, he said. First of all, I dont believe the inspector general would have jurisdiction over Comey any more, because hes no longer a federal employee. The inspector generals job is to investigate wrongdoing by employees of the Justice Department, of which Comey is no longer, thanks to Trump.
But, second, he continued, initiating an investigation because you dont like somebodys testimony could be considered obstruction. And in the whistleblower context, its both evidence of retaliation and, under some laws, could be an adverse retaliatory act itself.
In other words, Comey, here, is an employee who is blowing the whistle, to use the idiom, on his former boss. That boss wants to punish him for doing so. Thats problematic especially if theres no evidence that Comey actually violated any law that would trigger punishment.