Former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director James Comey on Wednesday accused U.S. President Donald Trump of trying to get him to water down the bureau's investigation into Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Mr. Trump asked Mr. Comey to drop an investigation of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn as part of the FBI probe into whether Moscow meddled in the election, according to testimony from Mr. Comey posted on the Senate Intelligence Committee's website.
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Mr. Comey said Mr. Trump told him at a dinner on January 27, 2017, a week after the President took office, that: “I need loyalty. I expect loyalty.”
Mr. Comey, who Mr. Trump fired last month, is to deliver his testimony in person at a much-anticipated hearing at the intelligence committee on Thursday.
During the dinner, the President asked him if he wanted to stay on as FBI Director, Mr. Comey said. The former FBI head said he became concerned that Mr. Trump was trying to create “some sort of patronage relationship”.
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Probes of the Russia allegations have hung over Mr. Trump’s presidency since he took office and threaten to overwhelm his policy priorities, with several congressional committees conducting their own investigations of the alleged meddling by Moscow.
The Kremlin denies U.S. intelligence agencies' conclusion that Moscow tried to tilt the election campaign in Mr. Trump’s favour, using means such as hacking into the emails of senior Democrats. Mr. Trump has denied any collusion.