Sen. Grassley: Comey Memos Should Have Stayed 'Secure'

Former FBI Director James Comey's memos contained details of a private conversation he had with President Donald Trump, and as such, should be kept secure, Sen. Chuck Grassley, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Tuesday.

"There are lawyers on both sides of that case, but I think I come down on the side of the fact that he had a private conversation with the president," the Iowa Republican told Fox News' "America's Newsroom" program. "I think he was also using an FBI or government computer to make his case on, and it belonged to the people of this country, and was not the personal property of the attorney general, I mean the FBI."

Christopher Wray, who Trump has nominated to replace Comey, will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday for his confirmation hearing, and Grassley said he expects there will be a chance to view Comey's notes before that happens.

"If they are classified information, I cannot talk about that," said Grassley, but he does expect to see them "in the next 24, 48 hours."

Grassley said that he is very concerned that the Justice Department and the FBI in particular "do not answer" oversight questions.

"I expect answers," Grassley said. "The second thing that I am most concerned about is whistleblowers come out to be listened to, and I don't think the FBI has had a very good track record of not retaliating against whistleblowers. Whistleblowers are patriotic people. They are protected under law."

And beyond that, Grassley said he wants to be sure that the new FBI director will be independent, not only from President Donald Trump but under future presidents as well.

Grassley said he is interested in whether Trump demanded Wray's loyalty in exchange for the nomination, following claims that Comey made claiming Trump asked him to remain loyal.

"What we want from any FBI director is loyalty to the people of the United States, and that loyalty to the people of the United States dictates no political interference in any of the investigations of the FBI," said Grassley. He pointed out that Democrats were happy when Comey announced he was not going ahead with prosecuting Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, but Republicans were happy when he reopened the case in October, just before the election.

"We should not have the FBI director making decisions on prosecutions," said Grassley. "That is up to the prosecutor and the attorney general."

Grassley also commented on the current impasse in the Senate over healthcare reform.

"It is very, very important that we deliver on the campaign promises over the last two elections, when we pointed out all the things wrong that we would crack down on," he said. "I don't find any fault with 52 Republicans having different opinions, but since we have to deliver on this, we are not getting any help from the Democrats. We ought to be able to deliver."

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