Trump lawyers postpone filing complaint over Comey leak
Comey instructed a friend to share details of his conversations with Trump.
— -- President Donald Trump’s personal lawyers are postponing filing complaints with the Department of Justice and Senate Judiciary Committee related to former FBI Director James Comey’s admission that he leaked details of his conversations with the president to reporters.
A person familiar with the matter told ABC News the legal team’s decision was made so that the Special Counsel Robert Mueller would have space to continue his investigation into Russian election meddling -- which has reportedly expanded to include whether or not Trump obstructed justice -- without the interference or distraction such complaints could create.
In his June 8 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Comey explained how he shared the details of memos describing his discussions with Trump with a friend, who then passed along the information to the New York Times.
Though Trump's lawyers are backing away from a complaint now, they expect to act upon it at a later date.
“The complaint to the [Justice Department Inspector General] and the submission to Senate Judiciary regarding Mr. Comey’s public testimony will go forward at the appropriate time,” the source said.
ABC News first reported on lead attorney Marc Kasowitz's threat to file a complaint on June 9, the day after Comey’s testimony in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Comey revealed to lawmakers at the time that he shared the memos with the hope that the action would lead to the appointment of a special counsel.