According to the second part of the Mueller Report, James Comey’s account of his interaction with the President is accurate. This is in spite of the many denials from the President about the matter.
After Comey’s account of the President’s request to “let[] Flynn go” became public, the President publicly disputed several aspects of the story. The President told the New York Times that he did not “shoo other people out of the room” when he talked to Comey and that he did not remember having a one-on-one conversation with Comey. The President also publicly denied that he had asked Comey to “let[] Flynn go” or otherwise communicated that Comey should drop the investigation of Flynn. In private, the President denied aspects of Comey’s account to White House advisors, but acknowledged to Priebus that he brought Flynn up in a meeting with Comey and stated Flynn was a good guy. Despite those denials, substantial evidence corroborates Comey’s account.
Mueller Report Volume 2, Page 44
As we have become accustomed, Trump will state one thing publicly and another privately. Or better yet, he’ll state one narrative to a group of people and an updated version to another. All in an effort to muddy the issue. The goal is always to create doubt and confusion in either the situation, the reporting, or both.
By creating doubt, Trump is able to steer the narrative in whichever way better suits him. Just because Trump did have “a meeting with Comey in which he brought up Flynn and where he mentioned Flynn was a good guy”, does not mean Comey’s account is 100% accurate, right? No. By planting these seeds of doubt into the American news cycle, Trump is able to cultivate them through his surrogates and, when ready, harvest the narrative(s) that best fit the situation.
