It was a few days before the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump's inauguration and a Lebanese-American businessman was on his way to Mar-a-Lago.

George Nader, an international fixer whose long history included intrepid back-channel mediation between Israel and Arab countries - and a 15-year-old pedophilia conviction in Europe that has not been previously reported - was transiting through Dulles International Airport outside Washington.

It was hardly his first far-flung journey to see top aides of the world's most powerful leader, as Nader had met the U.S. president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and chief strategist Steve Bannon in the days before they stormed the White House.

But he encountered an altogether different scene awaiting him at the airport.

There, special counsel Robert Mueller's investigators stopped Nader, people familiar with the case said. His electronics were seized and he was then allowed to go to his lawyer. Nader later agreed to cooperate with Mueller's investigation, said the people with knowledge of the case as it pertains to Nader. They weren't authorized to speak publicly on the case and demanded anonymity.

Mueller, whose team has spent the last 10 months investigating possible Trump-related wrongdoing connected to Russia, is interested in high-level get-togethers Nader participated in after the presidential election, according to three people familiar with the case.

The first took place in Trump Tower in New York in December 2016 and brought together Nader, Kushner, Bannon - whom Trump fired last August - and Mohammed bin Zayed, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi and de facto leader of the United Arab Emirates. The second occurred a month later in the Indian Ocean archipelago of Seychelles and involved Nader, bin Zayed, former Blackwater boss Erik Prince and Kirill Dmitriev, a Russian banker close to President Vladimir Putin.

For Nader, it was the latest brush with the law in an eventful, globe-trotting career.

Many of Nader's former contacts and onetime friends have noted in recent weeks how they lost touch with him in the early 2000s.

On Wednesday, an official in the Czech Republic told The Associated Press that Nader is a convicted pedophile and served time in a Prague prison around that time.

Nader was convicted by Prague's Municipal Court of 10 cases of sexually abusing minors and sentenced to a one-year prison term in May 2003, said Marketa Puci, the court spokeswoman. She said the crimes occurred between 1999 and 2002.

Nader's legal problems in Prague appear unrelated to his role in Mueller's probe in the United States. But they contribute to the portrait of a man who has led a shadowy existence as a go-between across numerous Middle East capitals and who gave testimony to Mueller's Washington grand jury earlier this month.

Nader had worked in recent times as an adviser to bin Zayed, one of the most powerful men in the Middle East, according to people who know Nader. The questioning of Nader in the Mueller probe suggests possible interest in UAE relations with Trump's transition team or his administration.

Puci, the court spokeswoman, said Nader was convicted of "moral corruption of minors, sexual abuse and impairing morals," after abusing underage boys.

In one case, Nader requested oral sex from a 14-year-old in a room at the Hilton Hotel in Prague, Puci said. After the boy refused, Nader masturbated in front of the boy and paid him 2,000 koruna - worth about $100 today, she said.

The verdict cites other examples of Nader providing money, jewelry, cellphones, clothes and accommodation for sexual services. The AP was able to see a copy of the verdict, which gives Nader's birthdate as May 15, 1959. Nader was separately accused in Washington, D.C., of child pornography infractions in 1985, but those charges were later dropped. A criminal docket sheet obtained by the AP shows the same birthdate for Nader.

Two people with knowledge of the case say it involved the same Nader now cooperating with Mueller.

Puci said it wasn't clear how much of the one-year sentence Nader served in the Czech Republic. He was ordered expelled following his time served.

Kathy Ruemmler, who previously served as White House counsel to President Barack Obama, is among the lawyers representing Nader. She declined to answer questions about her client.

But Sandeep Savla, another lawyer for Nader, said: "This is nothing more than an orchestrated, disgusting scheme by those who are trying to intimidate Mr. Nader into silence. It won't work. Mr. Nader will continue to answer truthfully questions put to him by the special counsel."

Nader's connections with Trump confidants include Elliott Broidy, a top Republican fundraiser who co-hosted a Tuesday night event attended by the president in Beverly Hills, California.

Earlier this month, several media organizations, including the AP, obtained emails belonging to Broidy, a California-based venture capitalist and the Republican National Committee's deputy finance chairman. They show Broidy emailing Nader with a summary of Broidy's talks with Kushner and Trump in the White House in October 2017, touching on matters including the UAE's bitter dispute with fellow Persian Gulf country Qatar.

Broidy accused Qatar of hacking his emails. The Qataris denied the charge.

"Your government's actions against U.S. citizens will jeopardize your nation's relationship with the United States," Broidy wrote in a public letter to Qatar's U.S. ambassador.

In response, the Qatari government called Broidy's "baseless accusations" a "diversionary tactic."

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Prague - 14 March 2018

1. Portion of court verdict and sentence with George Nader's name on it and stating he is a citizen of the United States

2. Various, Prague Municipal Court Spokesperson, Marketa Puci, holding court verdict and sentence

3. SOUNDBITE (Czech) Marketa Puci, Prague Municipal Court Spokesperson:

"I'm holding a verdict by which an American citizen, George Nader, together with Czech offenders was in 2003 convicted, for crimes that I will now read to you. The court sentenced him to one year in prison and to an indefinite deportation."

4. Shot of first page of court verdict and sentence reading, "judgment on behalf of the Republic"

5. SOUNDBITE (Czech) Marketa Puci, Prague Municipal Court Spokesperson:

"According to the then valid law, Mr. Nader was convicted of moral corruption of minors, sexual abuse and impairing morals."

6. Shot of first page of court verdict and sentence reading, "judgment on behalf of the Republic"

7. SOUNDBITE (Czech) Marketa Puci, Prague Municipal Court Spokesperson:

"At that time was (the victim) was 14-years-old. He (Nader) requested oral sex and after the boy refused, he with the boy's consent, pulled out his private parts and masturbated in front of him and for that mister Nader paid the boy 2000 Koruna. And there have been 10 similar cases like this."

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Washington, D.C. - 15 May 2017

8. Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan with President Donald Trump in Oval Office

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Washington - 13 June 2013

8. Various, then-FBI Director Robert Mueller being sworn in

9. STILL Image Mueller in committee hearing

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New York - 17 August 2016

10. Various views, then candidate Donald Trump meeting with advisers in Trump Tower, including Stephen Bannon and Paul Manafort

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New York - 15 December 2016

11. Wide, Trump Tower lobby

ASSOCIATED PRESS

New York - 11 November 2016

12. STILL Image, Stephen Bannon leaving Trump Tower

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New York - 9 December 2016

13. STILL Images, Steve Bannon speaking on cellphone outside Trump Tower

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New York - 14 November 2016

14. Mid, Jared Kushner arrives in lobby of Trump Tower

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New York - 6 December 2016

15. US President-elect Donald Trump walks out of elevator at Trump Tower

16. SOUNDBITE (English) Donald J. Trump, President-elect: ++SHOT CONTINUES FROM PREVIOUS++

"Good morning, how are you? Everything fine? We have got some great people coming in today. You'll see them."

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Dulles, Virginia - 6 October 2014

17. Wide, zoom Dulles airport

A Dutch attorney who lied to federal agents investigating former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was sentenced April 3rd to 30 days in prison in the first punishment handed down in special counsel's Russia investigation. He was also ordered to pay a $20,000 fine.

Alex van der Zwaan's sentence could set a guidepost for what other defendants charged with lying in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation may receive when their cases are resolved. Among them are a former White House national security adviser and a Trump campaign foreign policy aide.

Van der Zwaan had faced zero to six months in prison under federal sentencing guidelines, and his attorneys had pushed for him to pay a fine and leave the country. But U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, citing the need to deter others from lying in an investigation of international importance, said incarceration was necessary.

The criminal case against van der Zwaan is not directly related to Russian election interference, the main focus of Mueller's probe. But it has revealed new details about the government's case against Manafort as well as previously undisclosed connections between senior Trump campaign aides, including Rick Gates, and Russia. The allegations have also opened a window into the intersecting universes of international law, foreign consulting work and politics.

Van der Zwaan admitted in February to lying to federal agents about his contacts with Gates and a person prosecutors have since revealed has been assessed to have ties to Russian intelligence. Though prosecutors did not take a position on whether he should be locked up, they stressed that he had lied "repeatedly" to investigators.

Van der Zwaan's attorneys argued that he had suffered enough already, saying his life had already been destroyed by his "terrible decision" to lie to federal authorities.

The attorneys also pushed Jackson to allow van der Zwaan to return to London as soon as possible where he lives with his wife, who is pregnant with their first child.

***

James Comey blasts US President Donald Trump as unethical and "untethered to truth" and his leadership of the country as "transactional, ego driven and about personal loyalty," according to a forthcoming book from the former FBI director.

Comey reveals new details about his interactions with Trump and his decision-making in handling the Hillary Clinton email investigation.

He casts Trump as a mafia boss-like figure who sought to blur the line between law enforcement and politics and tried to pressure him regarding the investigation into Russian election interference.

The book adheres closely to Comey's public testimony and written statements about his interactions with the president during the early days of the administration and his growing concerns about the president's integrity. But it also includes surprisingly personal jabs at Trump that appear likely to irritate the notoriously thin-skinned president.

The 6-foot, 8-inch tall Comey describes Trump as shorter than he expected with a "too long" tie and "bright white half-moons" under his eyes that Comey suggests came from tanning goggles. He also says made a conscious effort to check the president's hand size, saying it was "smaller than mine, but did not seem unusually so."

The book, "A Higher Loyalty," is set to 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.

Comey writes that he regrets his approach and some of the wording he used in his July 2016 press conference in which he announced the decision not to prosecute Clinton.

But he says he believes he did the right thing by going before the cameras and making the statement, noting that the Justice Department had done it in other high profiles cases before.

Every person on the investigative team, Comey writes, found there was no prosecutable case against Clinton and that the FBI didn't catch her in a lie.

He also reveals for the first time that the U.S. government had unverified classified information that he believes could have been used to cast doubt on Attorney General Loretta Lynch's independence in the Clinton probe.

While Comey does not outline the details of the information - and says he didn't see indications of Lynch inappropriately influencing the investigation - he says it worried him that the material could be used to attack the integrity of the probe and the FBI's independence.

***

Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort arrived at a US federal courthouse in Washington, on April 19th as he seeks to challenge special counsel Robert Mueller's authority by arguing that Mueller overstepped his authority. Manafort is expected to ask a judge to throw out charges brought against him.

***

Gina Haspel - who's been nominated to be CIA director - says she wouldn't put in place any presidential order that she thought was immoral, even if it was technically legal.

A Senate committee is holding a hearing on Haspel's nomination, and Virginia Democrat Mark Warner asked whether she'd carry out any order from President Donald Trump that she found morally objectionable.

Haspel said she wouldn't.

My moral compass is strong," Haspel said.

"I would not allow CIA to undertake activity that I thought was immoral, even if it was technically legal. I would absolutely not permit it."

Haspel said the CIA must undertake activities consistent with American values.

***

U.S. President Donald Trump says he "unleashed an economic miracle" with his tax cuts in 2017.

Trump spoke on June 29th at a White House event marking the six-month anniversary of the $1.5 trillion tax cuts.

The cuts are taking effect in the ninth year of an economic expansion that began under former President Barack Obama.

Trump called the cuts the "biggest" in history. The overhaul ranks behind Ronald Reagan's in the early 1980s and post-World War II tax cuts.

The law provides generous tax cuts for corporations and the wealthiest Americans, and more modest reductions for middle- and low-income individuals and families.

Trump has been enjoying a good week, with two favorable Supreme Court rulings and Justice Anthony Kennedy's plans to retire from the Supreme Court.

01:05:16

SHOWS

Lawyer becomes first sentenced in Russia probe

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

Washington DC - 3 April 2018

1. Alex van der Zwaan getting out of SUV and walking into court, while man with sign yells at him to lock him up

Washington DC - 8 March 2018

2. Pan of Paul Manafort walking

Former FBI Director Comey compares Trump to mob boss in new book

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FILE: Washington DC - 22 January 2017

3. Pan right from US President Donald Trump to James Comey and back to Trump, UPSOUND (English): "So let's, oh and there's James (Comey), he's become more famous than me."

Comey's New Book Bashes Trump

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New York - 13 April 2018

++MUTE VIDEO++

4. Various of James Comey's book "A Higher Loyalty"

Ex-Trump campaign chief Manafort seeks dismissal of charges

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Washington DC - 19 April 2018

5. Various of Paul Manafort, US President Donald Trump's former campaign manager, arriving, walking into court building

CIA Nominee: I Wouldn't Follow 'Immoral' Orders

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Washington - 9 May 2018

6. Various of Senate Intelligence Hearing

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Gina Haspel, CIA Director Nominee: ++STARTS OFF-CAMERA++

"Senator, my moral compass is strong. I would not allow the CIA to undertake activity that I thought was immoral, even if it was technically legal. I would absolutely not permit it."

Trump says US tax cuts "unleashed an economic miracle"

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Washington DC - 29 June 2018

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Donald Trump, US President:

"Thank you very much everybody. The economy is indeed doing well. (Cheers.) Six months ago we unleashed an economic miracle by signing the biggest tax cuts and reforms, I have to add the word reform, very important word. But the tax cuts is what got us there and that is what is really doing it, the biggest tax cuts in American history.

The House Judiciary Committee questioned former White House counsel Don McGahn behind closed doors on Friday, two years after House Democrats originally sought his testimony as part of investigations into former President Donald Trump.

The long-awaited interview is the result of an agreement reached last month in federal court, and a transcript will be publicly released within a week.

House Democrats - then investigating whether Trump tried to obstruct the Justice Department's probes into his presidential campaign's ties to Russia - originally sued after McGahn defied an April 2019 subpoena on Trump's orders.

That same month, the Justice Department released a redacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller's report on the matter.

In the report, Mueller pointedly did not exonerate Trump of obstruction of justice but also did not recommend prosecuting him, citing Justice Department policy against indicting a sitting president.

Mueller's report quoted extensively from interviews with McGahn, who described the Republican president's efforts to stifle the investigation.

While the Judiciary panel eventually won its fight for McGahn's testimony, the court agreement placed limits on it.

The two sides agreed that McGahn would be questioned privately and will only be compelled to answer questions about publicly available portions of Mueller's report.

House Democrats kept the case going, even past Trump's presidency, and are moving forward with the interview to make an example of the former White House counsel after dozens of Trump administration officials refused to answer questions from Congress on various matters.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., said the agreement for McGahn's testimony was a good-faith compromise that "vindicates the congressional subpoena."

It is unclear what House Democrats will do with the testimony, which they sought before twice impeaching Trump. The Senate acquitted Trump of impeachment charges both times.

At a break during the interview, Nadler said McGahn is being "somewhat difficult" at times during the interview, but did not characterize what he had said.

Nadler said there were a handful of Democrats and Republican lawmakers in the room in addition to staff who were leading the questioning.

As White House counsel, McGahn had an insider's view of many of the episodes Mueller and his team examined for potential obstruction of justice during the Russia investigation.

McGahn proved a pivotal - and damning - witness against Trump, with his name mentioned hundreds of times in the text of the Mueller report and its footnotes.

McGahn described to investigators the president's repeated efforts to choke off the probe and directives he said he received from the president that unnerved him.

He recounted how Trump had demanded that he contact then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions to order him to unrecuse himself from the Russia investigation.

He also said Trump had implored him to tell the deputy attorney general at the time, Rod Rosenstein, to remove Mueller from his position because of perceived conflicts of interest - and, after that episode was reported in the media, to publicly and falsely deny that demand had ever been made.

McGahn also described the circumstances leading up to Trump's firing of James Comey as FBI director, including the president's insistence on including in the termination letter the fact that Comey had reassured Trump that he was not personally under investigation.

And he was present for a critical conversation early in the Trump administration, when Sally Yates, just before she was fired as acting attorney general as a holdover Obama appointee, relayed concerns to McGahn about new national security adviser Michael Flynn.

She raised the possibility that Flynn's conversations with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak - and his subsequent interview by the FBI - left him vulnerable to blackmail.

Trump's Justice Department fought efforts to have McGahn testify even after District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson in 2019 rejected arguments that Trump's close advisers were immune from congressional subpoena.

President Joe Biden's administration helped negotiate the final agreement.

++SOUNDBITES SEPARATED BY BLACK FRAMES++

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Washington, DC - 4 June 2021

1. Tracking shot of Rep. Jerry Nadler walking to reporters

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) House Judiciary Committee Chairman:

"Well, it vindicates the congressional subpoena rights. That's the main one.

3. Tracking shot of Nadler walking into committee room, UPSOUND (English)" And we'll see what comes out of that."

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Jim Jordan, (R) of the House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member:

"Mr. McGahn already testified for 30 some hours and of course, we have the Mueller report, we've had it for two years. We've had (Special Counsel) Bob Muller testify in front of this very committee. And you yet the Democrats there doing a five, six hour deposition."  

++BLACK FRAMES++

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Matt Gaetz, (R) Florida:

"We've learned nothing new. The expectation was that Don McGahn would be some sort of essential witness, bringing new information worthy of years of litigation and countless taxpayer dollars spent on this endeavour. And my perception of the events is that Mr. McGahn is unable to identify any unlawful conduct on the part of the president or any other member of the president's administration, and that the four corners of the Mueller report largely reflect what Mr. McGahn has remembered."

++BLACK FRAMES++

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, (D) Texas:

"I will say, as I started out this morning, it was crucial that Don McGahn come before the Judiciary Committee as one of the central witnesses of the report. I believe we have been vindicated in terms of the intimacy of his involvement and, of course, the ultimate conclusions of the Mueller report."

++BLACK FRAMES++

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, (D) Texas:  

"All that we can see and hear is that there was certainly a continuing problem in the former administration. And as the Judiciary Committee and the work that has already been done in impeachment proceedings and unfortunately, impeachment occurred, but conviction did not occur. I obviously believe there should have been a conviction. But at this point, I think the main point I want to render here is three equal branches of government have to be able to be respected and the Congress has to be respected with a subpoena and oversight responsibilities in compliance with executive privilege and constitutional parameters."

++BLACK FRAMES++

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Madeleine Dean, (D) House Judiciary Committee Vice Chairman:

"This was a good day for democracy. We were able to finally enforce after more than two years, our subpoena power as a coequal branch of government, doing our duty of oversight. You saw that the previous administration put up something like blanket immunity and other false legal concepts to do everything that they possibly could not to come before a coequal branch of government."

++BLACK FRAMES++

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Madeleine Dean, (D) House Judiciary Committee Vice Chairman:

"Mr. McGahn really brought to life volume two of the Mueller report and the chaos that must have been going on in that White House. You can read it in the report yourself. It's still the redacted version. But he literally brought to life that what was going on, the pressure that he was under, the pressure that other aides were under by the president to direct Rod Rosenstein to oust Special Counsel Mueller. The president being very upset over the investigation of Russian interference in the election, Russian connection to his campaign, as well as, of course, the possible obstruction of justice by a sitting president."

++EDIT ENDS ON SOUNDBITE++

On May 3rd 2017 US President Donald Trump abruptly fired FBI Director James Comey, ousting the nation's top law enforcement official in the midst of an investigation into whether Trump's campaign had ties to Russia's election meddling.

In a letter to Comey, Trump said the firing was necessary to restore "public trust and confidence" in the FBI.

Comey has come under intense scrutiny in recent months for his role in an investigation into Democrat Hillary Clinton's email practices, including a pair of letters he sent to Congress on the matter in the closing days of last year's election.

Trump made no mention of Comey's role in the Clinton investigation.

But the president did assert that Comey informed him "on three separate occasions that I am not under investigation."

***

President Donald Trump abruptly fired James Comey as director of the FBI in the midst of the law enforcement agency's investigation into whether Trump's presidential campaign was connected to Russian meddling in the election.

In a letter to Comey, Trump said the dismissal was necessary to restore the public's trust and confidence.

Often lauded for his independence, Comey had come under intense scrutiny in recent months for his role in the agency's investigation into the email practices of Trump's opponent, Democrat Hillary Clinton, including a pair of letters he sent to Congress on the matter in the final days of last November's election.

A look at key moments in Comey's tenure and the lead-up to Trump's decision to fire him.

July 5, 2016: Holds news conference to announce that "no reasonable prosecutor" would bring criminal charges against Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate, over her email practices as secretary of state, but criticizes Clinton and her staff for being "extremely careless" in their handling of classified material.

July 5, 2016: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump calls the FBI's decision not to bring criminal charges against Clinton the greatest example yet that the system is "rigged."

July 7, 2016: Comey vigorously defends the decision not to prosecute Clinton over her use of a private email server as secretary of state. Under an onslaught of Republican criticism, Comey says that to charge Clinton would have been unwarranted and mere "celebrity hunting."

Oct. 28, 2016: Days before the election, Comey informs Congress by letter that he was reopening the investigation into Clinton's email practices based on new evidence, citing the discovery of emails on a laptop used by a top Clinton aide. Justice Department officials warned Comey against sending the letter, saying that doing so would be inconsistent with department policy meant to avoid the appearance of prosecutorial interference or meddling in elections.

Oct. 28, 2016: Trump reacts to FBI's decision to investigate new messages related to Clinton's emails, telling a campaign rally that he has "great respect for the FBI for righting this wrong."

Nov. 6, 2016: Comey tells Congress in a follow-up letter that a review of newly discovered Clinton emails has "not changed our conclusions" that she should not face criminal charges.

Nov. 6: Trump criticizes Comey's second letter to Congress, saying Clinton was being protected by a "rigged system" and pronouncing her "guilty," despite the FBI's conclusion that criminal charges were unwarranted.

Nov. 8, 2016: Trump is elected president.

Nov. 12, 2016: During a telephone call with top campaign donors, Clinton blames Comey for her defeat by Trump. Clinton said her campaign was on track to win the election until Comey sent the letter to Congress on Oct. 28.

Nov. 13, 2016: In a CBS "60 Minutes" broadcast after the election, Trump said he hadn't decided whether to keep Comey.

Jan. 6, 2017: Comey is among a group of four top US intelligence officials who briefed then-President-elect Donald Trump on their conclusions that Russia meddled in the presidential election on his behalf. Trump told The Associated Press by telephone after the meeting that he "learned a lot" but declined to say whether he accepted their conclusion about Russia.

Jan. 22, 2017: Two days after taking office, Trump appears to single out Comey at a White House reception to thank law enforcement officers and others that helped during the inauguration. Trump called Comey over to where he was standing in the Blue Room to offer a handshake and a partial hug, then commented that Comey has "become more famous than me."

March 8, 2017: During a cyber security conference at Boston College, Comey said he planned to serve his entire 10-year term, quipping, "You're stuck with me for another 6½ years."

March 20, 2017: Comey testifies to Congress that the FBI has been investigating possible links between Trump associates and Russian officials since July, the same month he held an unusual news conference to discuss the investigation into Clinton. Comey had previously refused to acknowledge the parallel Trump investigation, and his disclosure enrages Democrats who already blamed Comey for costing Clinton the presidency.

March 20, 2017: Comey testifies at the same hearing that the FBI and Justice Department have no information to substantiate Trump's unsubstantiated claim on Twitter that former President Barack Obama wiretapped him before the election.

May 2, 2017: Clinton again lays part of the blame for losing the election on Comey's Oct. 28 letter. "If the election were on Oct. 27, I would have been your president," she tells a women's luncheon in New York.

May 3, 2017: Testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Comey insists that he was consistent in his handling of the separate investigations into Clinton and Trump. Comey also said it made him feel "mildly nauseous" to think his actions in October might have influenced the election outcome. But he told senators: "I can't consider for a second whose political futures will be affected and in what way. We have to ask ourselves what is the right thing to do and then do it."

May 9, 2017: Comey sends Congress a letter correcting his prior sworn testimony regarding emails handled by longtime Clinton associate Huma Abedin. Comey had told Congress that Abedin had sent "hundreds and thousands" of emails to her husband's laptop, including some with classified information. The two-page, follow-up letter said that, in fact, only "a small number" of the thousands of emails found on the laptop had been forwarded there while most had simply been backed up from electronic devices.

May 9, 2017: Trump abruptly fires Comey. "It is essential that we find new leadership for the FBI that restores public trust and confidence in its vital law enforcement mission," Trump states in a letter addressed to Comey.

***

White House officials say Trump's confidence in FBI Director James Comey had been eroding for months and that he was ultimately fired because he was 'not fit to do the job'.

"Frankly, he'd been considering letting Director Comey go since the day he was elected," White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, a sharply different explanation from the day before, when officials put the emphasis on new Justice complaints about Comey.

Days before he was fired, Comey requested more resources to pursue his investigation, U.S. officials have said, fueling concerns that Trump was trying to undermine a probe that could threaten his presidency.

The White House appeared caught off guard by the intense response to Comey's firing, given that the FBI director had become a pariah among Democrats for his role in the Clinton investigation.

***

Former FBI Director James Comey arrived on Capitol Hill June 8th for his much anticipated testimony at a the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing.

***

Fired FBI Director James Comey says, "Lordy, I hope there are tapes," of his conversations with President Donald Trump.

Three days after Trump fired Comey, the president tweeted that Comey should hope there are "no tapes" of their conversations.

Comey documented his conversations with Trump in memos after the encounters.

During his first public appearance since he was fired, senators asked Comey about his responses to Trump.

Comey says he chose his words carefully when responding to Trump because he was "so stunned" by the conversation.

Comey was recalling a February conversation in which, Comey says, Trump said he hoped Comey could let go the FBI's investigation into Trump's first national security adviser Michael Flynn's calls with the Russians.

***

Former FBI Director James Comey said at the end of his testimony to a Senate committee that he believes he was fired by President Donald Trump in an effort to affect the Russia investigation.

Comey said on June 8th that it's a "very big deal and not just because it involves me."

He said political considerations shouldn't influence the FBI's work.

Comey also said that if any American helped Russia in trying to influence the 2016 election, "that is a very big deal."

The former FBI chief said he's confident an investigation led by former FBI Director Robert Mueller will be conducted thoroughly.

00:00:00

Trump fires FBI director James Comey

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Washington,D.C. - 3 May 2017

1. SOUNDBITE (English) Senator Chuck Grassley, (R) Iowa, Chairman Senate Judiciary Committee:

"A cloud of doubt hangs over the FBI's objectivity. Once you buy into the claim of collusion, then suddenly ever interaction with a Russian can be twisted to seem like confirmation of a conspiracy theory."

2. Various of Comey being sworn in

00:22:22

Key moments leading up to Comey's firing

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FILE: Washington DC - 22 January 2017

++AUDIO AS INCOMING++

3. Various of US President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence applauding officers, first responders in Blue Room at a White House reception UPSOUND (English) President Donald Trump:

"So let's, oh and there's James (Comey), he's become more famous than me. (James Comey, director of the FBI embraces the President).

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Washington, D.C. - 9 May 2017

4. Letter by President Donald Trump regarding the firing of FBI Director James Comey

00:40:15

WH: Comey 'not fit to do the job'

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

Washington DC - 11 May 2017

5. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders walks in for press briefing

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Sarah Huckabee Sanders, White House Spokeswoman:

"He fired him because he was not fit to do the job. It's that simple.

00:45:04

Comey Arrives on Capitol Hill For Senate Hearing

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Washington, D.C. - 8 June 2017

7. Former FBI Director James Comey arriving in room for Senate Intelligence Hearing,

00:49:06

Comey: 'Lordy, I hope there are tapes'

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Washington DC - 8 June 2017

8. SOUNDBITE (English) James Comey, Former FBI Director:

" Look, I've seen the tweet about tapes, Lordy I hope there are tapes. I remember saying I agree he is a good guy, as a way of saying, I'm not agreeing with what you just asked me to do,

01:05:08

Comey: 'Fired Because of Russia Investigation'

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Washington DC - 8 June 2017

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. John Cornyn, (R) Texas:

"And let me ask you as a general proposition, if you are trying to make an investigation go away, is firing an FBI director a good way to make that happen?"

10. SOUNDBITE (English) James Comey, Former FBI Director:

"It doesn't make a lot of sense to me, but I'm actually hopelessly biased, given that I was the one fired.

Private tensions between Justice Department leaders and special counsel Robert Mueller's team broke into public view in extraordinary fashion Wednesday as Attorney General William Barr pushed back at complaints over his handling of the Trump-Russia investigation report and aimed his own criticism at the special counsel.

Testifying for the first time since releasing Mueller's report, Barr said he was surprised Mueller did not reach a conclusion on whether President Donald Trump had tried to obstruct justice, and that he felt compelled to step in with his own judgment that the president had committed no crime.

The airing of disagreements over the handling of the report was notable given the highly secretive nature of the special counsel's investigation and the public appearance for at least most of the probe that the Justice Department and Mueller's team were unified in approach.

But Barr sought to minimize the rift by suggesting the special counsel's concerns were largely about process, not substance.

Barr's appearance Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee gave him his most extensive opportunity to explain the department's actions, including his news conference held before the Mueller report's release.

It was also a forum for him to repair a reputation bruised by allegations that he's the Republican president's protector and by the emergence of a private letter from Mueller that criticized his handling of the report.

Democrats seized on the daylight between the two men to attack Barr's credibility and accuse him of unduly spinning Mueller's report in the president's favor.

They also pressed him on whether he had misled Congress last month when he professed ignorance about complaints from the special counsel's team. Barr suggested he had not lied because he was in touch with Mueller himself and not his team.

"Mr. Barr, I feel your answer was purposely misleading, and I believe others do too," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.

While Democratic senators bluntly questioned Barr's actions, Republicans, in addition to defending Trump, focused on the president's 2016 Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton's email and campaign practices and what they feel is a lack of investigation of them.

Neither side broke much ground Wednesday on the specifics of Mueller's investigation, though Barr did articulate a robust defense of Trump as he made clear his firm conviction that there was no prosecutable case against the president for obstruction of justice.

Barr entered the hearing on the defensive following reports hours earlier that Mueller had complained to him in a letter and over the phone about the way his findings were being portrayed.

Two days after receiving Mueller's report, Barr released a four-page letter that summarized the main findings.

Mueller's letter, dated March 27, conveys his unhappiness that Barr released what the attorney general saw as the bottom-line conclusions of the special counsel's investigation and not the introductions and executive summaries that Mueller's team had prepared and believed conveyed more nuance and context than Barr's own letter. Mueller said he had communicated the same concern two days earlier.

Once Mueller submitted his report, his work was done and the document was "my baby," Barr insisted defiantly.

"It was my decision how and when to make it public. Not Bob Mueller's," he said.

POOL

Washington DC - 1 May 2019

1. Wide, Senate Judiciary Committee

2. SOUNDBITE: (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, Chairman Judiciary Committee:

"The conclusions in your page four page summary, you think, accurately reflect his bottom line on collusion. Is that correct? (Barr: Yes) And you can read it for yourself if you got any doubt. As to obstruction of justice, were you surprised he was gonna let you decide?"

3. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Yes, I was surprised. I ... I think the very purpose the function he was carrying out the prosecutor of investigative and prosecutor function is performed for the purpose of people. (Graham: How many people did he actually indict, do you know?) I can't remember off the top of my head. (Graham: It was a lot.) Yeah."

4. Mid, Barr listening

5. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Thing that was confusing to me is that the investigation carried on for a while as additional episodes were were looked into, episodes involving the president. And so my question is or was why were those investigated if at the end of the day aren't going to reach a decision on them? (Graham: So did you consult Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein about the obstruction matter?) Constantly. (Graham: So, was he in agreement with your decision not to proceed forward?) Yes."

6. Wide, Barr listening

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democrat - Vermont:

"What really struck me, Mr. Mueller wrote that your letter threatened to undermine a central purpose for which the department appointed the special counsel to ensure full public confidence in the outcome of the investigation. Why did you testify on April 9th that you didn't know the concerns being expressed by Mueller's team, when in fact you had heard those concerns directly from Mr. Mueller two weeks before?"

8. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Mueller had never told me that that might that the expression of the findings was inaccurate. But I did then volunteer that I thought they were talking about the desire to have more information put out, but it wasn't my purpose to put out more information."

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democrat - Vermont:

"Mr. Barr are you ... I feel your answer was purposely misleading and I think others do too. May I ask you another one? You said the president is fully cooperating with an investigation, but his attorney had told a defendant he'd be taken care of if he didn't cooperate with the investigation. Is there a conflict in that there are conflict in that?"

10. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"I'm sorry, could you just repeat that? (Leahy: Both Mr. Manafort and Mr. Cohen we're told by Trump's personal attorney they'd be taken care of if they did not cooperate. You said that the president was fully cooperate. Is there a conflict there? Yes or no.) No."

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dick Durbin, Democrat - Illinois:

"No I'll just say this Mr. Barr if you received a letter from Bob Mueller a few days after your March 24th letter, it was clear he had some genuine concerns about what you had said and done to that point. Can we move to another topic?"

12. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Yeah, his concerns was he wanted more added and I would analogize it to this my ... you know after, after a months long trial if if if I wanted to go out and get out to the public what the verdict was pending preparation of the full transcript and I'm out there saying here's the verdict. And the prosecutor comes up and taps me on the shoulder and says, 'well the verdict doesn't really fully capture all my work about that great cross examination I did or how about that third day of trial where I did that. This doesn't capture everything.' My answer to that is I'm not trying to capture everything. I'm just trying to state the verdict. (Durbin: No you just absolutely use the word summarize though in your letter.) Summarize the principal conclusions. (Durbin: Principle conclusions which most people would view as a summary.)"

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Democrat - Rhode Island:

"You described the report in four pages and it's a 400 page report, I don't know why you're cavalier about whether it is a summary or not?"

14. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Because, as I state in the letter that I'm stating the principal conclusions. You know Bob Mueller is the equivalent of a U.S. attorney. He was exercising the powers of the attorney general subject to the supervision of the attorney general. He's part of the Department of Justice. His work concluded when he sent his report to the attorney general at that point it was my baby and I was making a decision as to whether or not to make it public. And I effectively overrode the regulations, use discretion, to lean as far forward as I could to make that public and was my decision how and when to make it public not Bob Mueller's."

15. Wide view of hearing

Private tensions between Justice Department leaders and special counsel Robert Mueller's team broke into public view in extraordinary fashion Wednesday as Attorney General William Barr pushed back at complaints over his handling of the Trump-Russia investigation report and aimed his own criticism at the special counsel.

Testifying for the first time since releasing Mueller's report, Barr said he was surprised Mueller did not reach a conclusion on whether President Donald Trump had tried to obstruct justice, and that he felt compelled to step in with his own judgment that the president had committed no crime.

The airing of disagreements over the handling of the report was notable given the highly secretive nature of the special counsel's investigation and the public appearance for at least most of the probe that the Justice Department and Mueller's team were unified in approach.

But Barr sought to minimize the rift by suggesting the special counsel's concerns were largely about process, not substance.

Barr's appearance Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee gave him his most extensive opportunity to explain the department's actions, including his news conference held before the Mueller report's release.

It was also a forum for him to repair a reputation bruised by allegations that he's the Republican president's protector and by the emergence of a private letter from Mueller that criticized his handling of the report.

Democrats seized on the daylight between the two men to attack Barr's credibility and accuse him of unduly spinning Mueller's report in the president's favor.

They also pressed him on whether he had misled Congress last month when he professed ignorance about complaints from the special counsel's team. Barr suggested he had not lied because he was in touch with Mueller himself and not his team.

"Mr. Barr, I feel your answer was purposely misleading, and I believe others do too," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.

While Democratic senators bluntly questioned Barr's actions, Republicans, in addition to defending Trump, focused on the president's 2016 Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton's email and campaign practices and what they feel is a lack of investigation of them.

Neither side broke much ground Wednesday on the specifics of Mueller's investigation, though Barr did articulate a robust defense of Trump as he made clear his firm conviction that there was no prosecutable case against the president for obstruction of justice.

Barr entered the hearing on the defensive following reports hours earlier that Mueller had complained to him in a letter and over the phone about the way his findings were being portrayed.

Two days after receiving Mueller's report, Barr released a four-page letter that summarized the main findings.

Mueller's letter, dated March 27, conveys his unhappiness that Barr released what the attorney general saw as the bottom-line conclusions of the special counsel's investigation and not the introductions and executive summaries that Mueller's team had prepared and believed conveyed more nuance and context than Barr's own letter. Mueller said he had communicated the same concern two days earlier.

Once Mueller submitted his report, his work was done and the document was "my baby," Barr insisted defiantly.

"It was my decision how and when to make it public. Not Bob Mueller's," he said.

POOL

Washington DC - 1 May 2019

1. Wide, Senate Judiciary Committee

2. SOUNDBITE: (English) Sen. Lindsey Graham, Chairman Judiciary Committee:

"The conclusions in your page four page summary, you think, accurately reflect his bottom line on collusion. Is that correct? (Barr: Yes) And you can read it for yourself if you got any doubt.  As to obstruction of justice, were you surprised he was gonna let you decide?"

3. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Yes, I was surprised. I ... I think the very purpose the function he was carrying out the prosecutor of investigative and prosecutor function is performed for the purpose of people. (Graham: How many people did he actually indict, do you know?) I can't remember off the top of my head. (Graham: It was a lot.) Yeah."

4. Mid, Barr listening

5. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Thing that was confusing to me is that the investigation carried on for a while as additional episodes were were looked into, episodes involving the president. And so my question is or was why were those investigated if at the end of the day aren't going to reach a decision on them? (Graham: So did you consult Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein about the obstruction matter?) Constantly. (Graham: So, was he in agreement with your decision not to proceed forward?) Yes."

6. Wide, Barr listening

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democrat - Vermont:

"What really struck me, Mr. Mueller wrote that your letter threatened to undermine a central purpose for which the department appointed the special counsel to ensure full public confidence in the outcome of the investigation. Why did you testify on April 9th that you didn't know the concerns being expressed by Mueller's team, when in fact you had heard those concerns directly from Mr. Mueller two weeks before?"

8. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Mueller had never told me that that might that the expression of the findings was inaccurate. But I did then volunteer that I thought they were talking about the desire to have more information put out, but it wasn't my purpose to put out more information."

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Patrick Leahy, Democrat - Vermont:

"Mr. Barr are you ... I feel your answer was purposely misleading and I think others do too. May I ask you another one? You said the president is fully cooperating with an investigation, but his attorney had told a defendant he'd be taken care of if he didn't cooperate with the investigation. Is there a conflict in that there are conflict in that?"

10. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"I'm sorry, could you just repeat that? (Leahy: Both Mr. Manafort and Mr. Cohen we're told by Trump's personal attorney they'd be taken care of if they did not cooperate. You said that the president was fully cooperate. Is there a conflict there? Yes or no.) No."

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Dick Durbin, Democrat - Illinois:

"No I'll just say this Mr. Barr if you received a letter from Bob Mueller a few days after your March 24th letter, it was clear he had some genuine concerns about what you had said and done to that point. Can we move to another topic?"

12. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Yeah, his concerns was he wanted more added and I would analogize it to this my ... you know after, after a months long trial if if if I wanted to go out and get out to the public what the verdict was pending preparation of the full transcript and I'm out there saying here's the verdict. And the prosecutor comes up and taps me on the shoulder and says, 'well the verdict doesn't really fully capture all my work about that great cross examination I did or how about that third day of trial where I did that. This doesn't capture everything.' My answer to that is I'm not trying to capture everything. I'm just trying to state the verdict.  (Durbin: No you just absolutely use the word summarize though in your letter.)  Summarize the principal conclusions.  (Durbin: Principle conclusions which most people would view as a summary.)"

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Democrat - Rhode Island:

"You described the report in four pages and it's a 400 page report, I don't know why you're cavalier about whether it is a summary or not?"

14. SOUNDBITE (English) William Barr, Attorney General:

"Because, as I state in the letter that I'm stating the principal conclusions. You know Bob Mueller is the equivalent of a U.S. attorney. He was exercising the powers of the attorney general subject to the supervision of the attorney general. He's part of the Department of Justice. His work concluded when he sent his report to the attorney general at that point it was my baby and I was making a decision as to whether or not to make it public. And I effectively overrode the regulations, use discretion, to lean as far forward as I could to make that public and was my decision how and when to make it public not Bob Mueller's."

15. Wide view of hearing

A joint House hearing to question FBI agent Peter Stzrok quickly devolved into chaos as US Republicans demanded he answer questions about the Russia investigation.

Republican and Democratic lawmakers openly yelled at one another as House Judiciary Committee Chairman Robert Goodlatte said Strzok needed to answer GOP questions and suggested they might recess the hearing and hold him in contempt.

Strzok said he could not answer a question about the early stages of the FBI investigation into Russian intervention because the probe is still ongoing and FBI counsel had instructed him not to. Democrats objected to Goodlatte's repeated attempts to get Strzok to answer.

At one point, Goodlatte told Strzok he could only consult with his own lawyer, not an FBI lawyer.

Goodlatte eventually let the hearing proceed without calling the panel into recess.

POOL

Washington DC - 12 July 2018

1. UPSOUND (English) Rep. Trey Gowdy, (R) South Carolina, House Oversight Committee Chairman:

"It's an eight day time period, we're a weekend to an investigation, how many people had you interviewed?"

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"Congressman, I understand your question. I appreciate it and I would very much like to answer, but as I've stated, as you know, that counsel of the FBI, based on the special counsel's equities, have directed me not to answer any questions about the ongoing investigation into Russian attempts to interfere..."

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia, House Judiciary Committee Chairman: ++OVER MULTIPLE ANGLES++

"The gentleman will suspend and the clock will suspend. Mr. Strzok, you are under subpoena and are required to answer the question. Are you objecting to the question? And if so, please state your objection."

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"Mr. Chairman, two things - one, I do not believe I am here under subpoena. I believe I am here voluntarily. Second, I will not, based on direction of the FBI to me, based on that, I will not answer that question because it goes to matters which are related to the ongoing investigations being undertaken by the special counsel."

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia, House Judiciary Committee Chairman:

"Mr. Strzok, you have not stated a valid legal basis for not responding to a question directed to you by a member of the United States House of Representatives and you are overruled."

UPSOUND Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York: "Point of order Mr. Chairman."

UPSOUND Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia: "Let me, let me continue. Your testimony is essential to this hearing."

6. UPSOUND (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York:

"And I have a point of order before he answers the question."

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia:

"The point of order is not well taken until-"

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York:

"You don't know what the point of order is, you can't say it's not well taken."

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia:

"The point of order - the witness will answer the question."

7. Various of Representatives talking over each other, Rep. Goodlatte, Rep. Nadler repeating appeal Rep. Goodlatte's ruling

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"Mr. Chairman, as you know, counsel for the FBI has directed me not to answer questions about the ongoing investigation. As you also know, counsel for the FBI is sitting here behind me - may I consult with him?"

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia: "You may consult with your own counsel."

UPSOUND (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent: But I may not with the FBI's counsel?"

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia: "Only with your own counsel."

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Trey Gowdy, (R) South Carolina:

"And your testimony is Bob Mueller did not kick you off because of the content of your texts, he kicked you off because of some appearance that he was worried about?"

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"My testimony, which you asked and what I responded to, was that he kicked me off because of my bias. I'm stating to it is not my understanding that he kicked me off because of any bias, that it was done based on the appearance. If you want to represent what you said accurately, I'm happy to answer that question. But I don't appreciate what was originally said being changed."

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Trey Gowdy, (R) South Carolina:

"I don't give a damn what you appreciate, Agent Strzok. I don't appreciate having an FBI agent with an unprecedented level of animus working on two major investigations here in 2016."

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"In terms of the text that 'we will stop it,' you need to understand that that was written late at night, off the cuff and it was in response to a series of events that included then candidate Trump insulting the immigrant family of a fallen war hero and my presumption based on that horrible, disgusting behavior that the American population would not elect somebody demonstrating that behavior to be president of the United States."

13. Cutaway of hearing

14. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"I can assure you, Mr. Chairman, at no time, in any of these texts did those personal beliefs ever enter into the realm of any action I took. Furthermore, this isn't just me sitting here telling you - you don't have to take my word for it. At every step, at every investigative decision, there are multiple layers of people above me - the assistant director, executive assistant director, deputy director and director of the FBI and multiple layers of people below me - section chiefs, supervisors, unit chiefs, case agents and analysts - all of whom were involved in all of these decisions. They would not tolerate any improper behavior in me any more than I would tolerate it in them. That is who we are as the FBI. And the suggestion that I, in some dark chamber somewhere in the FBI, would somehow cast aside all of these procedures, all of these safeguards and somehow be able to do this is astounding to me. It simply couldn't happen. And the proposition that that is going on, that it might occur anywhere in the FBI, deeply corrodes what the FBI is in American society, the effectiveness of their mission and it is deeply destructive."

15. Wide of hearing, some Democratic Representatives applauding

A joint House hearing to question FBI agent Peter Stzrok quickly devolved into chaos as Republicans demanded he answer questions about the Russia investigation.

Republican and Democratic lawmakers openly yelled at one another as House Judiciary Committee Chairman Robert Goodlatte said Strzok needed to answer GOP questions and suggested they might recess the hearing and hold him in contempt.

Strzok said he could not answer a question about the early stages of the FBI investigation into Russian intervention because the probe is still ongoing and FBI counsel had instructed him not to. Democrats objected to Goodlatte's repeated attempts to get Strzok to answer.

At one point, Goodlatte told Strzok he could only consult with his own lawyer, not an FBI lawyer.

Goodlatte eventually let the hearing proceed without calling the panel into recess.

POOL

Washington - 12 July 2018

1. UPSOUND (English) Rep. Trey Gowdy, (R) South Carolina, House Oversight Committee Chairman:

"It's an eight day time period, we're a weekend to an investigation, how many people had you interviewed?"

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"Congressman, I understand your question. I appreciate it and I would very much like to answer, but as I've stated, as you know, that counsel of the FBI, based on the special counsel's equities, have directed me not to answer any questions about the ongoing investigation into Russian attempts to interfere..."

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia, House Judiciary Committee Chairman: ++OVER MULTIPLE ANGLES++

"The gentleman will suspend and the clock will suspend. Mr. Strzok, you are under subpoena and are required to answer the question. Are you objecting to the question? And if so, please state your objection."

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"Mr. Chairman, two things - one, I do not believe I am here under subpoena. I believe I am here voluntarily. Second, I will not, based on direction of the FBI to me, based on that, I will not answer that question because it goes to matters which are related to the ongoing investigations being undertaken by the special counsel."

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia, House Judiciary Committee Chairman:

"Mr. Strzok, you have not stated a valid legal basis for not responding to a question directed to you by a member of the United States House of Representatives and you are overruled."

UPSOUND Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York: "Point of order Mr. Chairman."

UPSOUND Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia: "Let me, let me continue. Your testimony is essential to this hearing."

6. UPSOUND (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York:

"And I have a point of order before he answers the question."

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia:

"The point of order is not well taken until-"

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York:

"You don't know what the point of order is, you can't say it's not well taken."

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia:

"The point of order - the witness will answer the question."

7. Various of Representatives talking over each other, Rep. Goodlatte, Rep. Nadler repeating appeal Rep. Goodlatte's ruling

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"Mr. Chairman, as you know, counsel for the FBI has directed me not to answer questions about the ongoing investigation. As you also know, counsel for the FBI is sitting here behind me - may I consult with him?"

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia: "You may consult with your own counsel."

UPSOUND (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent: But I may not with the FBI's counsel?"

UPSOUND (English) Rep. Bob Goodlatte, (R) Virginia: "Only with your own counsel."

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Trey Gowdy, (R) South Carolina:

"And your testimony is Bob Mueller did not kick you off because of the content of your texts, he kicked you off because of some appearance that he was worried about?"

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"My testimony, which you asked and what I responded to, was that he kicked me off because of my bias. I'm stating to it is not my understanding that he kicked me off because of any bias, that it was done based on the appearance. If you want to represent what you said accurately, I'm happy to answer that question. But I don't appreciate what was originally said being changed."

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Trey Gowdy, (R) South Carolina:

"I don't give a damn what you appreciate, Agent Strzok. I don't appreciate having an FBI agent with an unprecedented level of animus working on two major investigations here in 2016."

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"In terms of the text that 'we will stop it,' you need to understand that that was written late at night, off the cuff and it was in response to a series of events that included then candidate Trump insulting the immigrant family of a fallen war hero and my presumption based on that horrible, disgusting behavior that the American population would not elect somebody demonstrating that behavior to be president of the United States."

13. Cutaway of hearing

14. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Strzok, FBI Agent:

"I can assure you, Mr. Chairman, at no time, in any of these texts did those personal beliefs ever enter into the realm of any action I took. Furthermore, this isn't just me sitting here telling you - you don't have to take my word for it. At every step, at every investigative decision, there are multiple layers of people above me - the assistant director, executive assistant director, deputy director and director of the FBI and multiple layers of people below me - section chiefs, supervisors, unit chiefs, case agents and analysts - all of whom were involved in all of these decisions. They would not tolerate any improper behavior in me any more than I would tolerate it in them. That is who we are as the FBI. And the suggestion that I, in some dark chamber somewhere in the FBI, would somehow cast aside all of these procedures, all of these safeguards and somehow be able to do this is astounding to me. It simply couldn't happen. And the proposition that that is going on, that it might occur anywhere in the FBI, deeply corrodes what the FBI is in American society, the effectiveness of their mission and it is deeply destructive."

15. Wide of hearing, some Democratic Representatives applauding