Former FBI Director James Comey writes in his new book that he felt concerned about President Donald Trump’s priorities after he and other top intelligence officials briefed Trump and other top administration officials. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images 7 striking details from James Comey's new book The former FBI director dishes on Trump's 'ego driven' leadership and his fixation with the infamous Russia dossier.

Former FBI Director James Comey is poised to kick off a massive media blitz this weekend as he begins a highly anticipated tour for his new book, “A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership.” But the former Trump administration official, whose ouster remains shrouded in intrigue, began nabbing headlines on Thursday as portions of his book were released to news outlets.

Comey sat down for five hours with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos this week for an exclusive interview, an edited version of which is set to air Sunday night, the first in a series of prominent appearances poised to dominate news cycles. Other stops on Comey’s jam-packed April tour include a “Late Show” appearance on Tuesday, a sit-down with the co-hosts of “The View” on Wednesday and a CNN town hall on April 25.


Though Comey’s book is not set to be released until Tuesday, numerous publications had obtained either sneak peeks or full copies of the book by Thursday evening.

Here’s a look at some of the most eye-catching claims in Comey’s book.

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Trump asked Comey to look into allegations in the so-called Trump-Russia dossier

The former FBI director writes in his book that the president asked him to look into the uncorroborated allegations from the dossier compiled by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele that Trump hired prostitutes to urinate in front of him in a Moscow hotel room where President Barack Obama had stayed, according to a copy obtained by the New York Post . Trump, according to the report, expressed interest in digging into the claims out of concern that his wife, first lady Melania Trump, might believe them.

“He brought up what he called the ‘golden showers thing’ … adding that it bothered him if there was ‘even a 1 percent chance’ his wife, Melania, thought it was true,” Comey reportedly writes in “A Higher Loyalty.”

He added: “He just rolled on, unprompted, explaining why it couldn’t possibly be true, ending by saying he was thinking of asking me to investigate the allegation to prove it was a lie. I said it was up to him.”

Comey cites a ‘development still unknown’ about Loretta Lynch in seizing a public role in Hillary Clinton probe

Comey discusses at length in the book his handling of the federal investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server.

According to ABC News , the former FBI director felt compelled to take a prominent public role in the investigation into Clinton in part because of a “development still unknown to the American public to this day” about former Attorney General Loretta Lynch that he feared critics would use to raise doubts about the integrity of the investigation.

Comey writes in the book that in early 2016, the U.S. government obtained information from a classified source regarding Lynch. He writes that “the source and content of that material remains classified as I write this.”

Comey does not elaborate on what the information is. But he adds: “Had it become public, the unverified material would undoubtedly have been used by political opponents to cast serious doubt on the attorney general’s independence in connection with the Clinton investigation.”

The former FBI director reportedly writes, however, that he did not sense that Lynch interfered with the inquiry, despite her highly scrutinized tarmac exchange in Phoenix, Arizona, with former President Bill Clinton. But Comey cited the episode as a rationale for assuming a larger public profile in the investigation.

Former FBI director was wary of Trump’s seeming calls for loyalty

Comey writes that he felt concerned about the president’s priorities after he and other top intelligence officials briefed Trump, Vice President-elect Mike Pence and several top aides on Russian meddling efforts a few weeks before the inauguration.

According the ABC News report, Comey says that instead of inquiring about the threat from Russia, Trump and his team appeared more focused on “how they could spin what we’d just told them” and discussing “how to position these findings for maximum political advantage.”

“I sat there thinking, Holy crap, they are trying to make each of us ‘amica nostra’ — friend of ours. To draw us in,” Comey writes. “As crazy as it sounds, I suddenly had the feeling that, in the blink of an eye, the president-elect was trying to make us all part of the same family and that Team Trump had made it a ‘thing of ours.’”

Comey calls Trump ‘untethered to truth,’ depicts his leadership as mafia-esque

In his forthcoming book, Comey hammers the president’s ethics and leadership, calling him “untethered to truth” and his management “ego driven and about personal loyalty,” according to The Associated Press.

Comey, who was dismissed by the president last May amid a federal investigation into Russian election interference and ties to Trump campaign officials, casts the president’s influence on his decision-making in a negative light. He frames Trump as someone seeking to pressure him regarding the Russia inquiry.

Comey’s remarks on the investigation are likely to be of interest to special counsel Robert Mueller, his mentor and predecessor atop the bureau, who is reportedly looking into whether Trump has obstructed justice by impeding federal inquiries into Russia meddling in 2016.

Trump’s behavior violates ‘basic norms of ethical leadership’ but ‘may fall short of being illegal,’ Comey argues

Another passage likely to elicit interest from Mueller’s team of federal prosecutors is Comey’s description of his meeting with Trump about the FBI investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn.

Comey, who testified on the matter before lawmakers last year, recalls Trump’s asking Attorney General Jeff Sessions to clear the room so they could speak directly about the matter, according to The Washington Post .

“I hope you can see your way clear to letting this go, to letting Flynn go,” Trump told Comey, according to his recollection in the memoir. “He is a good guy. I hope you can let this go.”

Comey described Sessions as being “both overwhelmed and overmatched by the job” and feeling as though “he would not be able to help me” in the situation.

But despite expressing deep concerns over Trump’s actions during the meeting, Comey declines to weigh in on whether the president obstructed justice.

“I have one perspective on the behavior I saw,” he writes, “which while disturbing and violating basic norms of ethical leadership, may fall short of being illegal.”

Kelly expressed concerns to Comey about working for ‘dishonorable people’

Two sources who have read Comey’s book told The Daily Beast that in a previously reported phone call between John Kelly and Comey after his firing, Kelly — who was then secretary of homeland security and is now the White House chief of staff — voiced concern about the way the president handled the FBI director’s firing.

Comey recalls the phone call in his book, writing that Kelly said he was “sick” about the ordeal and “intended to quit” in protest of the president’s decision. Kelly “said he didn’t want to work for dishonorable people,” the sources said.

Comey pokes fun at Trump’s hand size, complexion in book

The former FBI director did not shy away from taking jabs at his former boss in his book.

ABC News reports that the 6-foot-8 Comey made light of the president’s 6-foot-3 stature, writing that he “appeared shorter than he seemed on a debate stage.”

Comey also alluded to Trump’s infamous dust-up with Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, another 2016 Republican presidential candidate, over their hand sizes. Comey writes of a greeting in which the president offered his hand: “It was smaller than mine, but did not seem unusually so.”

The president set the internet ablaze on the 2016 campaign trail when he pushed back against Rubio’s assertion that he has small hands.

“I have to say this, he hit my hands. Nobody has ever hit my hands,” Trump declared at a primary debate. “I’ve never heard of this one. Look at those hands. Are they small hands? And he referred to my hands if they’re small, something else must be small.”

He added: “I guarantee you there’s no problem. I guarantee you.”

Comey also appears to reference a common online trope about the president’s complexion, writing that during a meeting his “face appeared slightly orange, with bright white half-moons under his eyes where I assumed he placed small tanning goggles, and impressively coiffed, bright blond hair, which upon close inspection looked to be all his.”

“I remember wondering,” Comey writes, “how long it must take him in the morning to get that done.”

