How Is It Possible That James Comey Is Teaching Ethics?

von Dominick Mezzapesa · 16.12.2017

While investigating another story I came across James Comey the Former FBI Director's twitter page.
James Comey @Comey

Formerly @FormerBu

, past FBI Director, current husband and father, writing and speaking about ethical leadership, taller and funnier in person.
I was shocked... SHOCKED To read that James Comey is teaching ethics!

I consider myself extremely ethical. I will never write something that was a lie, or made up, or even stretch the truth just to get some hits. While I respect James Comey for what he has done for our country, I do not accept him as a legitimate teacher of ethics.

Lord knows I made a million mistakes in my life but the one thing I do is keep in mind at all times is every damn one of those mistakes. So, if, ten years ago, I spat on a Manhattan street and got a ticket for it, I could never write about anyone who ever receives a ticket for spitting.

If a cop pulled over Hillary Clinton for spitting and I was standing right there and filmed the whole thing. I could not write about it because I would be a hypocrite. Thus, it would violate my ethics and morals. To do otherwise would give up the one thing I have in this world, that no one can take from me.

James Comey's Ethics
I was one of the rare few who praised Comey when he sent that letter to Congress just days before the Presidential election. Many people were for or against it and 99.9% of them based their answer on which party they supported. But for me, there was no debating it, and it had nothing to do with my supporting Trump. I had to support James Comey because ethically he had no choice.

When James Comey concluded the Hillary investigation the first time he swore to Congress "I consider the matter closed but if something major occurs I will notify this body." He then went on to have his, now famous press conference.

But when the NYPD found thousands of Hillary's emails on Anthony Weiner's laptop, James Comey's ethics and Morals dictated what he needed to do. He had little choice but to inform Congress because he swore an oath that if "Anything Major Occurs" he would inform Congress. The discovery by the NYPD of thousands of Hillary emails far exceeded that threshold.

James Comey Ethics Be Damned
Just as I gave him credit for a decision which I believed was based on his Ethical standards, it would be ethically wrong not to point out his repulsive behavior when he threw those supposed ethics under the bus for his own vindication on President Trump.

After President Trump fired him, Trump being Trump sent out a threatening tweet saying 'Jame Comey better hope I did not tape our private meeting.' That tweet started the events that showed us the true nature of James Comey and why it is ludicrous for the former FBI Director to be writing and speaking about ethical leadership when clearly he has none.

In order to be writing and speaking about ethical leadership... You must possess them first.
When James Comey testified in front of the Senate, from my vantage point, whoever thought James Comey was a man who valued Ethics and Morals, James Comey himself just shattered that myth.

James Comey leaking information to a friend so he could get it planted in a New York Times story, from an ethical standpoint, it is nothing short of reprehensible.

James Comey testified about leaking, possible classified information at the Senate hearings:
"My judgment was I needed to get that out into the public square. So I asked a friend of mine to share the content of the memo with a reporter. I didn't do it myself for a variety of reasons, but I asked him to because I thought that might prompt the appointment of a special counsel," Comey said.
This is how I, an ethical man saw his testimony.

The "Variety of reasons" was basically, I knew it was wrong, and it bordered on illegal. He also could not have foreseen he would one day be testifying in front of Congress. He played the situation as any leaker would. He tried his best to cover his tracks. If not for stupidity from others, he quite possibly could have gotten away with it. So the basic fact that he tried to cover it all up, is proof that he knew what he was doing was wrong, both ethically and morally.

Ignoring His Ethics For Personal Gain.

Comey being the head of the FBI knew for the past 6-months that Trump was being so investigated that they knew every detail of his life. Comey testified he was not under investigation but we know that the FBI was using the Dossier to unmask Trump officials.
Even if Trump was not the focus of the investigation. Those unmasked official were inside Trump tower, working for Donald Trump. By being affiliated with those that were under investigation, Trump had to pass at least some minor investigation. Only when he passed those check did the FBI not open a full investigation into Trump.
Comey being the head of the FBI knew that the FBI found absolutely nothing in these small look-sees at Trump. Through all the other real full-fledged investigations, Trump remained spotless. Comey knowing Trump by any measure was innocent of any Russia Collusion. But Comey also knew that a special prosecutor would be able to look at anything. That means his investigation would go far beyond just the limited 2016 Elections the FBI was restricted to. So while Trump didn't collude with the Russians, maybe his Atlantic city casino in 1990 had to deal with criminal elements or fooled around with the financial, or evaded taxes. A special prosecutor could investigate anything and everything his heart desired. Comey leaked those documents because he wanted revenge on Trump for firing him. Does that in any way sound ethical to you?
Besides wanting revenge, just the fact he leaked the information proved Comey had very little in the way of ethics. By leaking the information he broke the oath he took as an FBI agent. Whether classified or not, an FBI agent is not allowed to be leaking any information at all. In fact, the FBI, as a rule, refuse to even answer the simple question of "Is there an investigation ongoing at this time." As the former head of the FBI even if he was fired, those rules still applied, he also may or may not have informed the FBI he had these papers in his personal files.

Decades of field service and he got confused?
When Trump cleared out the dining room to speak to Comey person to person, Comey testified he didn't understand what was going on at first. This in itself is laughable. Damn, when I was a kid and my father said clear the room, I want to talk to Dominick alone, I knew something was up.

While Comey didn't know if Trump would ask for his resignation, or wanted to discuss another matter, Comey knew two things. It was a private meeting and it was off the record. Now if Trump asked for something illegal then all bets are off. But Comey testified that Trump never asked him to do something even remotely like that. In fact, Trump asked for the opposite. He wanted the Russian thing to end and commented that 'It would be a good thing to find out if some people working for me were doing something illegal behind my back.'

But where Comey threw away his ethics was...

Immediately write down the whole meeting almost word for word the moment he got into his limo. Comey did this for one reason and that was to protect himself and possibly use it against Trump if need be.
Some would say "What's wrong with protecting yourself. But if you went along with the premise of "Private Meeting." Trump naturally assumes it's off the record. So his speech, choice of words, in fact, everything he did from that moment on would have been affected. Trump relied on Comey's so-called 'Ethics' to allow him to speak plainly. If he told Trump "Yes I agree to keep this meeting private and will share it with no one, but I'll be writing it all down later." Do you think Trump would have talked the same exact way?
Not only did Comey ignore his ethics, he then buried them by later leaking the contents of what he wrote to the Newspapers, and talking about it in an open setting. He could have easily said "That conversation was privileged. Or I will disclose our dinner conversation but only in closed-door testimony this afternoon.

No matter how you look at his private meeting with Trump, ethically speaking, James Comey proved he is ethically challenged.

Loretta Lynch
"At one point, the attorney general had directed me not to call it an investigation but instead to call it a matter, which confused me and concerned me," Comey said.

Comey said he didn't push back.

"I said (to myself), 'This isn't a hill worth dying on... But he said the matter gave him a "queasy feeling."
A person who claims to be speaking about "Ethics" knows damn well EVERY hill is worth dying for.

Once any line, no matter how inconsequential it seems to ordinary people, those that live and willing to die for their ethics. A line drawn is immovable. It can't be 'occasionally' crossed. Worse, it can't be crossed to save you an argument. Basically, it similar to the old saying "You can't get a little pregnant." You live your life by the standards you set. Everyone is different and I would not even be writing this story except for the fact that James Comey is now writing and speaking about ethical leadership.

James Comey testified that when Loretta lynch asked him to call the Clinton investigation "A Matter" it gave him a "queasy feeling." In other words that queasy feeling he testified to was his ethics. So he KNEW that he was crossing his own personal ethical boundary. Ethically he should have responded "I'm sorry I can not do that, my ethics will not permit it. Either find someone else to testify, order me to call it a "meeting." But, I will not call an investigation "a Matter" because that would make the FBI seem as if it was political.

https://youtu.be/a9Ie4FKDmTU

In Conclusion

I could go on but anyone who declares himself a teacher of Ethical studies, knowing his own history, is, in fact, showing us he has no ethics, morals or standards.

In fact, every week when he cashes his check for his writing and speaking about ethical leadership, is in itself going against any ethics, morals, and standards he may have been professing to.

I am not a world scholar and of course, I am a Grammar Nazi's worst nightmare. But I spent a little time last night trying to put my words into a quote. It took me hours but I believed I captured the disgust I felt when discovering James Comey was writing and speaking about ethical leadership.

Now it's a matter for the public to deiced if I succeeded. If I failed, I fully accept that, and hopefully, you will be able to improve upon what I had started.