General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: ACLU: "Comey approved some of the worst abuses committed by the Bush administration" [View all]cheapdate
(3,811 posts)Comey refused to certify or 'sign-off" on aspects of the administration's NSA surveillance program -- the legality of which he believed was highly dubious. He threatened to resign over the matter and positively refused to sign-off on it. His refusal led to the pitiful scene in John Ashcroft's hospital room where Andrew Card and Alberto Gonzalez tried to pressure the ailing Ashcroft into approving the controversial (and probably illegal) plan.
I don't know a lot about Comey, but that took guts and principle.
It also seems fairly obvious to me the inherent advantage of having a qualified official who served in the Bush administration in charge of the FBI. It's a question of whether the president would rather spend his remaining time governing, or else spend it in confrontation with the lunatic Republicans in the House.
I'm neither defending nor supporting torture in any way, nor am I defending any role Comey may have had in the awful, shameful conduct of the United States in torturing military prisoners.