Justice Department Inspector General Didn’t Find Trump’s “den of thieves” at FBI
Testimony elicited by Cohen suggests Comey has not lied
WASHINGTON – At a joint House Oversight and Government Reform and Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday, Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) elicited testimony from U.S. Justice Department Inspector general Michael E. Horowitz that former FBI Director James Comey had an "strong reputation" for truth and veracity and that Horowitz never identified what President Trump has referred to as a "den of thieves" within the FBI. See video of the exchange here.
Horowitz was testifying about his office's review of the FBI's handling of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of a private the email server and the Justice Department 2016 decision not to prosecute her. The hearing was chaired by Congressman Trey Gowdy.
In an exchange, Congressman Cohen asked Horowitz about Comey's reputation for truth and veracity. Horowitz responded that "he had a very strong reputation," adding that he couldn't think of an instance in which Comey lied.
Cohen: "So when President Trump said there's not a person who's told more lies in the world than Jim Comey, you would disagree with that?" Cohen asked.
Horowitz: "I'm not going to answer what other people's views are. I think I can only speak to what my interactions with him were."
Cohen: "Chairman Gowdy, my friend, has said confidence in our system of law enforcement and public prosecution is important to confidence in our government and the rule of law, and I agree with him. Would a statement to say that the FBI was a ‘den of thieves' contribute to the sour climate that we have in this country towards law enforcement and the rule of law?"
Horowitz: "Congressman, I'm going to stick to what we've concluded in our report and others can assess what they think."
Cohen: "Is there a den of thieves at the FBI?"
Horowitz: "We in this investigation or any other we've done, we've not identified a den of thieves."
President Trump Friday told reporters that "Comey was the ringleader of this whole, you know, den of thieves."