In Forthcoming Book, Former FBI Director Comey Says Trump 'Untethered To Truth'
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/CBSNews) -- In his forthcoming book "A Higher Loyalty," former FBI director James Comey blasts President Donald Trump as "untethered to truth" and calls the president's leadership "ego driven and about personal loyalty."
As CBS2's Dick Brennan reported, Comey suggests there was tension from the beginning, even before the inauguration.
Comey briefed Trump on the allegations contained in a then-unsubstantiated dossier on Russian interference in the 2016 election. Comey said Trump focused on one of the most salacious allegations in the dossier – that he purportedly had a sexual encounter in a Moscow hotel room.
Comey writes, Trump "strongly denied the allegations, asking – rhetorically, I assumed – whether he seemed like a guy who needed the service of prostitutes."
More: Comey: 'I Was Fired Because Of The Russia Investigation'
Comey also writes about the Oval Office meeting where he says the president asked him for his loyalty, which he testified about before Congress.
"I was playing in my mind, what should my response be? And that's why I very carefully chose the words," he said last June.
More: Comey: President Trump Said 'I Expect Loyalty,' Asked For Help To 'Lift The Cloud' Of Investigations
Comey said the meeting felt like "Sammy the Bull's Cosa Nostra induction ceremony," referring to mobster Sammy Gravano, one of John Gotti's old henchmen.
"A Higher Loyalty" will be released next week. The Associated Press purchased a copy this week.
Trump fired Comey in May 2017, setting off a scramble at the Justice Department that led to the appointment of Robert Mueller as special counsel overseeing the Russia investigation. Mueller's probe has expanded to include whether Trump obstructed justice by firing Comey, which the president denies. Trump has assailed Comey as a "showboat" and a "liar."
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