Trump praises Comey for having 'a lot of guts'

Donald Trump offered high praise for FBI Director James Comey on Monday, saying "it took a lot of guts" for him to decide the agency should review new evidence regarding Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server at the State Department.

“In all fairness, I think right now she has bigger problems than Obamacare,” Trump told supporters in Grand Rapids, Michigan. “They may finally have gotten wise to the Clintons. Perhaps they’ve finally gotten wise.”


Trump transitioned from Obamacare, a key talking point since the administration announced last week that premiums will go up by 25 percent next year, to the political gift the FBI essentially put in the Trump campaign’s lap when Comey announced to lawmakers Friday that the bureau would be reviewing new emails that “appear to be pertinent” to its investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server.

“And I have to give the FBI credit. That was so bad what happened originally,” Trump said, referring to Comey’s announcement in July to not recommend charges against Clinton to the Justice Department. “And it took guts for Director Comey to make the move that he made in light of the kind of opposition he had where they’re trying to protect her from criminal prosecution. You know that. It took a lot of guts.”

Trump, who was highly critical of Comey, the FBI and DOJ after his summer announcement, said Monday he “really disagreed with him” at the time.

“I was not his fan,” he added, “but I’ll tell you what: What he did, he brought back his reputation. He brought it back.”

The GOP nominee also advised the FBI chief to “hang tough.” “A lot of people want him to do the wrong thing,” Trump suggested. “What he did was the right thing.”

Clinton and her allies have turned on Comey, a man they lavished praise on for his initial handling of the investigation, since his three-paragraph pronouncement reignited questions over Clinton’s handling of classified information, her trustworthiness and judgment, providing fresh fodder for Republicans to rally voters to the polls through Nov. 8.

Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta blasted Comey’s letter during a conference call Saturday, calling it “long on innuendo and short on facts.” He accused Comey of creating a problem for Clinton just 11 days out from Election Day and called on him to disclose more details.

Clinton herself said it was “pretty strange” Saturday that Comey would send that letter, adding that such a move is “unprecedented” and “deeply troubling.” She urged Comey to “explain everything right away.”

Comey’s decision to alert Congress also drew the ire of outgoing Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, who wrote in a letter Sunday that Comey, “through his partisan actions,” may have violated the Hatch Act, which bars federal employees in the executive branch from influencing elections.

Former attorneys general, including Eric Holder, Michael Mukasey and Alberto Gonzales, have criticized Comey’s move, too, which reports suggest the Justice Department also discouraged.