Eve Levin  //  5/14/17  //  Topic Update

President Trump fired FBI Director James Comey, initially citing the recommendation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein (NYT, WSJ, The Guardian).

• Here are the news release, letters from President Trump and Attorney General Sessions, and a memorandum regarding the decision.
• The Trump Administration initially maintained the decision stemmed from Comey’s handling of the probe into Hillary Clinton’s emails (WaPo).
• Neil Kinkopf decried Trump's "fake transparency" in his reasons for firing Comey and calls for the appointment of a special counsel (Take Care).
• Jason Harrow explained that Trump does possess the constitutional power to fire Comey (Take Care).
• Noah Feldman warned of a crisis in American rule of law (Bloomberg).
• David Frum cautioned, "This is not a drill" (Atlantic).
• David Graham remarked upon the convenience of this decision vis-a-vis the Russia investigation (Atlantic).
• Ben Wittes & Susan Hennessey described the termination as a "stunning event" and a "profoundly dangerous thing" (Lawfare).
• Lawfare also hosted an "emergency" podcast to discuss the Comey termination, and began collecting public statements by lawmakers.
• David Post analyzed the firing and echoed calls for a special prosecutor (Volokh Conspiracy).
• Phillip Bobbits noted "this paradox: the president’s alleged acceptance of a recommendation from the attorney general . . . that is almost certainly not itself based on that rationale" (Just Security).
• John Cassidy decribed the firing as "a premeditated and terrifying attack on the American system of government" (New Yorker).
• United to Protect Democracy issued a statement condemning the President's decision.
• Several Republican Senators expressed concern about the firing (Axios).

Additional details emerged over the course of the week about the decision to fire Director Comey (Politico, NYT, WaPo, WSJ).

• Comey had sought additional resources for the FBI’s Russia investigation prior to being fired (NYT, Wapo).
• At Take Care, Niko Bowie argues that the firing was legal and demonstrates why an executive branch investigation is insufficient.
• Joshua Matz explains that firing Comey undermined one of the government’s central arguments in the revised travel ban case (Take Care).
• Also at Take Care, Zachary Price argues that the firing threatens the critical norm of apolitical law enforcement.
• And Ian Samuel observes that congressional Republicans, the only actors immediately capable of policing the President, haven’t shown much interest (Take Care).
• Marty Lederman highlighted a significant “omission” in Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein’s memo -- an affirmative recommendation to fire Comey (Just Security).
• Ryan Goodman considered suggestions Comey’s firing may constitute obstruction of justice (Just Security).
• Helen Murillo discussed the statutory elements of obstruction of justice and viable enforcement mechanisms (Lawfare).
• Bobby Chesney reviewed a president’s power to appoint and remove the FBI Director (Lawfare).
• Julian Sanchez offered thoughts on what the firing means for the Russia investigation going forward (Just Security).
• Ken Gude argued that Rosenstein’s reputation now depends on his appointing a special counsel to oversee the Russia investigation (Just Security).
• Bobby Chesney and Steve Vladeck discussed the firing on a special edition of the National Security Law Podcast (Lawfare).
• Susan Hennessey and Quinta Jurecic examined whether Attorney General Jeff Sessions’s involvement in firing Comey violated his recusal pledge (Lawfare).
• Bob Bauer argued that the manner in which Comey was fired has serious implications for the rule of law (Lawfare).
• Anthony Romero of the ACLU called for a special prosecutor and the creation of a select committee to investigate the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia (ACLU).
• At Slate, Dahlia Lithwick argued that the legality of the President’s decision is less important than whether the decision was “normal versus insane.”

Later in the week, President Trump contradicted his communications staff when he said that he had made the decision to fire James Comey before meeting with Attorney General Sessions and Deputy AG Rosenstein on Monday (WaPo).

• Clips of the NBC News interview are available here.
• On Take Care, Aziz Huq posits that whether the action is legal or whether we are in a constitutional crisis may not be the relevant questions to ask to assess democratic decline.
• ICYMI: Here is all of Take Care’s ongoing coverage of the Comey firing.
• Steve Vladeck highlights the coming crisis over Comey’s successor, noting that the names floated so far raise concerns about independence from the White House (Just Security).
• Paul Rosenzweig argues that Rosenstein’s memorandum was strangely inadequate and offered an outline of what a more adequate memorandum from Rosenstein might have entailed (Lawfare).
• Kate Brannen offers a Q&A on the Comey firing, Russia investigation, and more (Just Security).
• Eric Posner gives a “very reluctant” defense of the firing (Eric Posner).
• Michael Gerson writes that the president’s pick for the next FBI director could trigger a constitutional crisis (WaPo).
• David Stewart analogizes the firing to President Andrew Johnson’s firing of Edwin Stanton, a move that led to Johnson’s impeachment in the House of Representatives (WaPo).
• The New York Times Editorial Board penned an open letter to Deputy AG Rosenstein, arguing that he bears significant burden for safeguarding American democracy and must appoint a special counsel to lead the Russia investigation. 

Chairman of the House Committee on Government Oversight and Reform Jason Chaffetz requested an investigation into the episode by DOJ’s Inspector General Michael Horowitz (Politico).

• You can read Chaffetz’s letter here.
• Daphna Renan and David Pozen argue that by circumventing the IG’s ongoing investigation into Comey’s conduct during the 2016 campaign, the process by which Comey was fired raises similar professional concerns to those leveled against Comey (Lawfare).
• Jack Goldsmith and Helen Murillo highlight key questions now that Horowitz and his Comey investigation are about to take center stage (Lawfare).

Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testified before Congress Thursday, contradicting key White House claims (NYT, WaPo).

• The Washington Post has the full transcript here.
• On Lawfare, Quinta Jurecic liveblogged the hearing and then offered highlights of the testimony.
• One of the key White House claims McCabe refuted was that Comey had lost support at the FBI, an assertion the White House has offered no evidence for, explains Kate Brannen (Just Security).

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