Donald Trump’s lawyers will postpone filing a complaint against former FBI Director James Comey with the Justice Department, according to a person familiar with the decision -- a bid to stop antagonizing the special counsel who’s investigating ties between the president’s campaign and Russian officials.
Trump’s lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, planned to file a complaint with the Justice Department’s inspector general about Comey. The ousted FBI director told the Senate on June 8 that he had arranged for memos he wrote documenting conversations with the president to be described to news reporters. Trump was furious about what he considered an illegal "leak" by Comey.
The president’s lawyers still intend to file a complaint at some point, the person familiar with the matter said. The person insisted on anonymity to discuss the president’s legal strategy. The delay is a professional courtesy to the special counsel, Robert Mueller, and a signal that the White House understands he needs space to do his job, the person said.
Trump has previously criticized Mueller, repeatedly attacking him and his investigation on Twitter as a “witch hunt.” His remarks have prompted speculation he would try to fire the special counsel; the White House has recently said he won’t.
Norman Eisen, President Barack Obama’s former ethics czar and chairman of the advocacy group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, promised to file a defense of Comey. He has called the planned Trump complaint “an abuse of process” in a Twitter message and added: “beware there r serious consequences for abuse of process.”