President Donald Trump on Monday angrily attacked reporters on the White House’s South Lawn when they asked him if he was a Russian asset.

The reporters asked Trump the question in the wake of an explosive New York Times report that revealed the FBI opened an investigation into whether Trump had been acting at the behest of the Russian government during both the 2016 presidential campaign and while as president.

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“I never worked for Russia. And you know that answer better than anybody. It is a disgrace you asked that question. It is a whole big fat hoax. It is just a hoax,” Trump angrily insisted.

The president also lashed out at former FBI director James Comey and other top law enforcement officials.

“So the people doing that investigation were people that have been caught that are known scoundrels there,” Trump told reporters. “You could say they are dirty cops. I’ll tell you what. It is so unfair what’s happened to the FBI in terms of the men and women working in the rank and file of the FBI. I know many of them. These are great people. They are so embarrassed by their leadership.”

“The whole thing is a hoax. It is a big hoax and it is very bad for our country. What happened with the FBI, I have done a great service for our country when I fired James Comey, because he was a bad cop and he was a dirty cop. He lied. He really lied,” the president claimed.

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