Comey: No evidence to support Trump’s wiretap claim
WASHINGTON – FBI Director James Comey said he has not seen any evidence to support President Donald Trump’s claim that Trump Tower was placed under surveillance.
“With respect to the president’s tweets about alleged wiretapping directed at him by the prior administration, I have no information that supports those Tweets. And we have looked carefully inside the FBI,” Comey told the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on Monday in response to a question from Ranking Member Adam Schiff (D-Calif.).
Three weeks ago Trump tweeted that former President Barack Obama had ordered Trump Tower to be placed under electronic surveillance during the campaign.
A spokesperson for Obama said the claim was false.
Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) and Schiff have both stated that they are not aware of any evidence to support Trump’s claim.
The chairman and vice-chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence also have said that they have not seen any evidence to substantiate Trump’s wiretapping allegations.
Despite the denials from Congress, the White House has maintained that Trump stands by his claims and ultimately believes he will be vindicated.
The White House has not yet responded to Comey’s testimony.
Both committees are investigating Russian interference in last year’s presidential election as well as allegations that members of the Trump campaign spoke with high-ranking Russian officials.
Bryan is an award-winning political journalist who has extensive experience covering Congress and Maryland state government.
His work includes coverage of the election of Donald Trump, the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and attorneys general William Barr and Jeff Sessions-as well as that of the Maryland General Assembly, Gov. Larry Hogan, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bryan has broken stories involving athletic and sexual assault scandals with the Baltimore Post-Examiner.
His original UMBC investigation gained international attention, was featured in People Magazine and he was interviewed by ABC’s “Good Morning America” and local radio stations. Bryan broke subsequent stories documenting UMBC’s omission of a sexual assault on their daily crime log and a federal investigation related to the university’s handling of an alleged sexual assault.