Another twist from the White House. In a move that surprised everyone, the president of the United States, Donald Trump, fired the director of the FBI, James Comey, who was investigating the relationship between the presidential staff and Russia. The official press release explains the decision with the need to "rebuild trust in the country's most important security agency. This day - the text continues - marks a new beginning for the jewel in the crown of our judicial systems. The search for a new director will begin immediately."
A few days ago Comey testified before the US congressional commission on the possible relationship between the electoral committee that managed the Trump campaign and the Moscow government. Senator Ron Wyden described the decision as "outrageous" and the Democrats immediately asked that the Russiagate investigation be entrusted to an independent prosecutor.
But the White House has specified that the removal of Comey was advised by the Minister of Justice, Jeff Sessions, who believes that the director of the FBI "must be someone who faithfully follows the rules and principles" of the Justice Department, someone who "set the right example" to those who have to enforce the law.
A few minutes before the firing was announced, Sessions' deputy had released a memo claiming he could not defend the way Comey had handled the investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails, which exploded during the election campaign damaging the candidate's credibility democratic.
In essence, the White House version is that Comey's firing was due to errors in conducting the investigation into Trump's rival. But the timing gives rise to the suspicion that the decision is linked to the intensification of investigations into possible relations between the President's men and Moscow. Comey, 56, was nominated in 2013 by Obama and his mandate would expire in 2023.
