WASHINGTON — Former FBI director James Comey says he thought during a January dinner with President Donald Trump that the president was “looking to get something” in exchange for allowing him to stay on as FBI director.

Comey is describing his views that the president was trying to create a type of “patronage relationship” at the start of the Trump administration.

MORE: Read James Comey’s prepared statement before Thursday’s Senate hearing

The ousted FBI head is testifying that the president told him before the dinner he hoped he would stay as director.

Comey says law enforcement leaders aren’t “supposed to be peeking out to see whether your patron is pleased or not with what you’re doing.”

READ MORE: What to watch for in Comey’s Senate testimony