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Trump: I was going to fire Comey regardless of recommendation The termination letter from President Donald Trump to FBI Director James Comey is photographed in Washington, Tuesday, May 9, 2017. Trump abruptly fired Comey, ousting the nation's top law enforcement official in the midst of an investigation into whether Trump's campaign had ties to Russia's election meddling. In the letter to Comey, Trump said the firing was necessary to restore "public trust and confidence" in the FBI. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Thursday May 11, 2017 at 10:16 AM May 11, 2017 at 12:39 PM President Donald Trump says in an interview that he had planned to fire FBI Director James Comey regardless of the recommendation from his deputy attorney general, contrary to earlier statements from the White House. The Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Thursday he would have fired FBI Director James Comey even without the recommendation from his top political appointees at the Justice Department, contradicting earlier White House accounts.   He insisted anew that Comey had told him directly three separate times that he personally was not under investigation.   "I was going to fire Comey," Trump said in an interview with NBC. The White House and Vice President Mike Pence have said the president acted on the recommendation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.   "Regardless of recommendation I was going to fire Comey," Trump said.   Trump's comments came amid increased criticism of the White House's evolving explanation of the firing.   In public testimony Thursday, the acting FBI director, Andrew McCabe, contradicted White House statements about why Comey was dismissed, particularly the assertion that Comey had lost the confidence of the rank and file of the FBI.   "That is not accurate," McCabe said in response to a senator's question. "I can tell you also that Director Comey enjoyed broad support within the FBI and still does to this day."         In the NBC interview, Trump repeated his assertion that Comey three times assured him he was not under investigation.   "He said it once at dinner, and then he said it twice during phone calls," Trump said.   McCabe told senators it is not standard FBI practice to tell someone he or she is or isn't under investigation. He would not comment on conversations between Trump and the FBI director.   The White House refused Wednesday to provide any evidence or greater detail. Former FBI agents said such a statement by the director would be all but unthinkable.