WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday tweeted that he did not record his conversations with then-FBI Director James Comey, putting to rest one of the biggest lingering mysteries surrounding the drama between the president and the FBI head he later dismissed. The president fired Comey in May and then tweeted that the lawman, who was overseeing the investigation into possible contacts between Trump’s campaign and Russian officials, “better hope that there are no ‘tapes’ of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press.”

Trump and his aides have since then steadfastly refused to clarify that extraordinary if ambiguous warning. The former FBI head said Trump asked for his “loyalty” during a January dinner, and suggested he let the investigation into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn “go.”

“Lordy, I hope there are tapes,” Comey told Congress during his testimony. If the White House does respond and claims that they do not know about the existence of tapes, the committee will continue to ask all those they interview whether they know anything about the president’s recording habits.
U.S. President Donald Trump clarifies that he did not record any private conversations with former FBI Director James Comey.