Donald Trump's lawyers 'lay out strategy to discredit James Comey and head off obstruction of justice probe'
Lawyers for Donald Trump say he has the power to hire and fire as he sees fit, and have called into question the reliability of his former FBI director as they lay out their defence against allegations of obstructing justice, it was reported on Thursday.
The Wall Street Journal reported the President’s legal team submitted a memo to the special counsel leading the investigation saying he has authority under the constitution to dismiss the head of the FBI.
It also said another memo suggested James Comey, fired by Mr Trump in May, was the source of leaks to the news media and would make an unsuitable witness.
The details offer a glimpse into how Mr Trump’s lawyers plan to head off the investigation by Robert Mueller, the special counsel, which becomes bigger and broader all the time.
He was appointed by the Justice Department after Mr Comey was dismissed to look into not just Russian efforts to rig the election but into any other matters arising from the investigation.
Mr Comey himself told Congress he believed he was removed in order to undermine the department’s Russia investigation and, soon after, it was reported that the investigation had been expanded to cover potential obstruction of justice.
The White House referred questions about its defence strategy to Ty Cobb, the president’s special counsel. Mr Cobb told the Wall Street Journal: “We have great respect for the special counsel. Out of respect for his process we will not be discussing incremental responses.”
US intelligence agencies have confirmed that Moscow was behind attempts to hack American political party computers and to break into election systems in an effort to help Mr Trump defeat Hillary Clinton.
Mr Trump and Russia have denied any collusion but the issue has overshadowed the new administration as federal and Congressional investigations expanded their remit.
Other details emerged this week demonstrating how the probes had intensified.
Mr Mueller has reportedly recruited the Internal Revenue Service and its criminal investigation department which targets tax evasion and money laundering.
And Mr Mueller’s team is working with Eric Schneiderman, New York attorney general, on its investigation into Paul Manafort, who served as Mr Trump’s campaign chairman last year and his financial transactions, according to Politico and several US news outlets.
He was left his campaign position amid growing questions about his work for pro-Russia political groups in the Ukraine.
FBI agents searched Mr Manafort’s Virginia home in July, seizing documents and other material.
He has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
