Last Updated Apr 19, 2018 8:38 PM EDT
Capitol Hill has received redacted versions of former FBI Director James Comey’s memos, after President Trump approved their transmission, sources tell CBS News. Two sources familiar with the matter told CBS News’ chief White House correspondent Major Garrett the president approved the transmission after receiving recommendations from top Justice Department officials.
CBS News has obtained redcated versions of the memos.
Those familiar with the memos say they are longer, and more detailed, than Comey has described publicly and are therefore — from the White House’s perspective — more “favorable” than Comey’s description in his book or in recent interviews. The memos were requested by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Virginia, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy, R-South Carolina, and House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, R-California.
Comey, who was fired by Mr. Trump in May, has begun a tour to tout his new book, “A Higher Loyalty,” which describes his time as FBI director and the time period surrounding his firing. In the book, Comey describes Mr. Trump as “untethered to truth,” and Mr. Trump’s leadership style as “ego driven and about personal loyalty.”
In response, Mr. Trump has fired off a handful of tweets about Comey, calling him a “weak and untruthful slime ball.”
“It was my great honor to fire James Comey,” Mr. Trump tweeted over the weekend.
Comey’s memos, some of which he leaked to a friend for release to the media, influenced Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s decision to appoint special counsel Robert Mueller to oversee the Russia investigation into Russian election meddling and any ties to Trump associates.
CBS News’ Rebecca Kaplan contributed to this report.
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