Trump Asked Comey to Drop Flynn Investigation, According to Memo Written by Former FBI Director
President made request after Flynn resigned; White House denies account
By Del Quentin Wilber and Aruna Viswanatha Updated May 16, 2017 8:42 p.m. ET 2276 COMMENTS
President Donald Trump asked then-FBI Director James Comey to back off the investigation of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn shortly after Mr. Flynn had resigned, according to two people close to Mr. Comey.
The people said they had seen a memo written by Mr. Comey that documented a meeting with the president during which Mr. Trump told the director that he hoped he could find a way to drop the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s probe of Mr. Flynn.
“I hope you can let this go,” Mr. Trump told the former FBI director, according to the memo, which was described in detail by a person close to Mr. Comey. A second associate confirmed having seen the memo and the thrust of its contents. Both requested anonymity to describe the law enforcement record.
The memo isn’t the only one that documents Mr. Comey’s encounters with the president, according to one of the people. There are “a number of encounters with the president that concerned him, and he wrote very detailed memos about those instances,” the person said.
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