--- title: Donald Trump Told Russians James Comey Was a 'Nut Job' description: President Donald Trump told Russian officials that firing former FBI director James Comey relieved "great pressure" over the Russia Probe canonical: https://time.com/4786698/president-trump-james-russia-comey-nut-job/ author: Mahita Gajanan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-05-19T19:41:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T05:01:49.215Z article:section: Politics og:title: President Trump: Firing 'Nut Job' Comey Relieved Pressure From Russia Probe og:description: "I just fired the head of the F.B.I. He was crazy, a real nut job," Trump told Russian officials og:url: https://time.com/4786698/president-trump-james-russia-comey-nut-job/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte908718b8af37d18/6988ce20cf40a82199c47c60/trump9.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4114 og:image:height: 2314 og:image:alt: Donald Trump Holds Joint Press Conference With Colombian President Santos og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Trump: Firing 'Nut Job' Comey Relieved Pressure From Russia Probe twitter:description: "I just fired the head of the F.B.I. He was crazy, a real nut job," Trump told Russian officials twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte908718b8af37d18/6988ce20cf40a82199c47c60/trump9.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Trump to Russian Diplomats: Firing 'Nut Job' James Comey Relieved Pressure From Russia Probe > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. May 19, 2017 7:41 PM UTC  President Trump attends a joint news conference with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos at the White House May 18, 2017 in Washington, DC. President Trump attends a joint news conference with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos at the White House May 18, 2017 in Washington, DC. Mark Wilson—Getty Images by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. May 19, 2017 7:41 PM UTC [President Donald Trump](http://time.com/4783666/donald-trump-special-counsel-robert-mueller-russia/) told Russian diplomats who visited the Oval Office that firing former FBI director James Comey relieved “great pressure” he felt regarding the bureau’s investigation into possible collusion between his campaign and Russian operatives, according to a [New York _Times_ report](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/us/politics/trump-russia-comey.html?%5Fr=0). Trump referred to Comey, who was [fired](http://time.com/4776737/president-donald-trump-james-comey-fired-russia-investigation/) earlier this month, as a “real nut job,” according to the Times, which cited a document that summarized the [president’s meeting](http://time.com/4781992/vladimir-putin-donald-trump-russia-congress-notes/) with Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov and Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak. “I just fired the head of the F.B.I. He was crazy, a real nut job,” Trump said, according to the _Times_. “I faced great pressure because of Russia. That’s taken off.” “I’m not under investigation,” he added, according to the _Times._ Trump’s comments again highlight that he seemingly fired Comey because he was frustrated with the FBI’s investigation into ties between his campaign and Russia. Although he essentially said he came to his decision because of the investigation during an [interview with NBC News](http://time.com/4776737/president-donald-trump-james-comey-fired-russia-investigation/) last week, the White House’s official reasoning for firing Comey has shifted several times. The meeting between Trump and the Russian officials also proved controversial after it was revealed that the president [disclosed classified information](http://time.com/4781992/vladimir-putin-donald-trump-russia-congress-notes/) to the diplomats. White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer did not dispute the _Times_ account of Trump’s conversation with the Russian officials. He said in a statement that Comey put pressure on Trump’s ability to work on diplomatic matters with Russia. “By grandstanding and politicizing the investigation into Russia’s actions, James Comey created unnecessary pressure on our ability to engage and negotiate with Russia,” Spicer said. “The investigation would have always continued, and obviously, the termination of Comey would not have ended it. Once again, the real story is that our national security has been undermined by the leaking of private and highly classified conversations.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4786698/president-trump-james-russia-comey-nut-job/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4786698/president-trump-james-russia-comey-nut-job/"},"headline":"President Trump to Russian Diplomats: Firing 'Nut Job' James Comey Relieved Pressure From Russia Probe","datePublished":"2017-05-19T19:41:59.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T05:01:49.215Z","description":"\"I just fired the head of the F.B.I. 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