Is There Anything Normal About the Firing of James Comey?
The short answer: no.
On this week’s second episode of The E.R., David Rothkopf, Kori Schake, Ben Wittes, David Sanger, and Colin Kahl gather to make sense of the dismissal of FBI Director James Comey. The FBI is in the midst of a deep investigation into members of the Trump campaign and their possible collusion with Russia into the subversion of the U.S. election, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Donald Trump are meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov today, and the administration’s silence on Moscow’s meddling is shocking to parties from both sides of the aisle. To say that Trump has impeccable timing is an understatement.
On this week’s second episode of The E.R., David Rothkopf, Kori Schake, Ben Wittes, David Sanger, and Colin Kahl gather to make sense of the dismissal of FBI Director James Comey. The FBI is in the midst of a deep investigation into members of the Trump campaign and their possible collusion with Russia into the subversion of the U.S. election, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Donald Trump are meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov today, and the administration’s silence on Moscow’s meddling is shocking to parties from both sides of the aisle. To say that Trump has impeccable timing is an understatement.
What does the sudden Comey sacking mean in terms of foreign policy? Will there be international consequences? Does it create a vacuum for adversaries to take advantage of a vulnerable America?
The Trump administration clearly didn’t think this one through, and the implications are severe. For further analysis, read David Rothkopf’s take here and Kori Schake’s commentary here.
Ben Wittes is a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution and is the editor-in-chief of the Lawfare blog. Follow him on Twitter: @benjaminwittes.
Colin Kahl is a contributing editor to FP’s Shadow Government blog. He’s currently a professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in the security studies program, and was previously the deputy assistant to President Barack Obama and national security advisor to Vice President Joe Biden. Follow him on Twitter: @ColinKahl.
David Sanger is the national security correspondent for the New York Times and author of Confront and Conceal: Obama’s Secret Wars and Surprising Use of American Power. Follow him on Twitter: @SangerNYT.
Kori Schake is a research fellow at the Hoover Institution, where she focuses on military history, and a former foreign-policy advisor to Sen. John McCain. Follow her on Twitter: @KoriSchake.
David Rothkopf is the CEO and editor of the FP Group. Follow him on Twitter: @djrothkopf.
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