Here comes Comey.
The former FBI director with an ego almost the size of Donald Trump's takes the stand Thursday before the Senate Intelligence Committee probing Russian collusion with the Trump team in the election.
The President had best beware. Playing the role that John Dean did in the Richard Nixon Watergate drama wouldn't bother James Comey. He's become the architect of White House fate. He torpedoed Hillary Clinton's bid to become president. He could now torpedo Mr. Trump as President. Or help save him.
Read more: Anticipation builds as Comey set to break silence on Trump
Don't bet on the latter. Mr. Comey's got an axe to grind. Having helped Mr. Trump become king, the king turned around and fired him. For good measure he labelled him a "nut job." Mr. Comey, he with the screen-star looks like Mr. Dean, was only in his third year of a 10-year post.
The reckless President – "unhinged" is the word du jour – has alienated many in Washington's intelligence-gathering precincts. As Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has pointed out, it is not a wise move. "Let me tell you: You take on the intelligence community – they have six ways from Sunday of getting back at you."
At the Senate hearing, Mr. Comey will surely be asked if, as has been reported, Mr. Trump asked him to back off on the collusion investigation. If he says yes, out will come the obstruction-of-justice hounds. Much of the universe, with exceptions such as redneck regions of America, will celebrate. Even though Mr. Trump has only been in office a few months, the attitude is enough already.
Mr. Trump's office has denied he asked Mr. Comey to back off. But Mr. Comey has a record. He kept notes. The President might have a record, too. He warned the Comey meetings may have been taped. That may only serve to add weight to the Comey testimony. He's not going to embellish his account knowing there may be a recording.
A former registered Republican with a net worth of $11-million (U.S.), Mr. Comey loves the limelight. He overstepped his bounds in personally delivering the ruling on Ms. Clinton's use of a private e-mail server last summer. He did it again when, with just over a week left in the campaign, he rocked the race by announcing a renewed e-mail investigation.
As if not enough havoc was already forged by this "showboat," as Mr. Trump also called him, somehow contents of a memo he had written about his Trump meeting made their way to The New York Times – from a Comey associate.
The President claims that Mr. Comey told him three times he was not a target of the Russian investigation. Mr. Comey could well confirm that. But it may be the case that it takes time to establish what the President knew and when he knew it.
On the Senate witness stand Wednesday are Dan Coats, director of national intelligence, and Mike Rogers, director of the National Security Agency. They could fuel an obstruction-of-justice case. The Washington Post has reported both men as saying Mr. Trump asked them to publicly deny collusion between Russian officials and Trump associates.
Mr. Trump passed on the possibility of trying to prevent the Comey appearance by invoking executive privilege. It would have been a difficult case to mount and it would have made him look more guilty.
The beleaguered Mr. Trump has predictably received support from Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who said that while there may be some Russian hackers he doesn't know about, the whole business of collusion has no factual foundation. He particularly made light of his Russian ambassador holding talks with U.S. officials: "What else is the ambassador supposed to do? He's paid for holding meetings, discussing current affairs. Have you lost your mind? Maybe someone has a pill that will cure this hysteria."
The "showboat" certainly won't be that pill. He could have avoided this committee appearance, which the major TV networks – smelling big stuff – have decided to carry live. He passed on passing. He wants the story out.
Lawrence Martin