But I can confidently tell you that the majority, the vast majority of Federal Bureau of Investigation employees enjoyed a deep, positive connection to Director Comey, ' said McCabe, who was elevated after Trump unceremoniously fired Comey just two days ago.
The White House issued a timeline on Wednesday night of the events leading up to the termination of FBI Director James Comey Tuesday, ostensibly seeking to clear the air about President Donald Trump's motivations.
"No sir, that is not accurate", McCabe answered. Earlier this month, Clinton told CNN's Christiane Amanpour, "I was on the way to winning until the combination of Jim Comey's letter on October 28 (to Congress announcing the re-opening of the investigation) and Russian WikiLeaks raised doubts in the minds of people who were inclined to vote for me but got scared off".
But Mr Trump's dismissal of the very man in charge of investigating whether his campaign colluded with Russian Federation has attracted allegations of a cover-up.
The defence came after Trump in an interview to NBC had effectively contradicted his own White House when he said he would have sacked Comey "regardless" of the recommendation of Attorney General Jeff Sessions. We had a very nice dinner at the White House. very early on. He said there has been no interference so far.
But multiple news outlets have reported that Trump made up his mind long before speaking to either Sessions or Comey.
"The investigation will move forward, absolutely", McCabe said.
A White House spokeswoman on Thursday disputed the description of the dinner by Comey's associates.
As Matthew Yglesias notes, the Republicans who control Congress can head off an impeachment crisis by un-gumming the path to justice via some investigative entity beyond Donald Trump's control. The firing, which the White House indicated was because of his handling of the bureau's investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of private email servers, sent shockwaves throughout Washington and beyond. Republican leaders brushed off the idea as unnecessary. Hours after that letter was made public, Trump spokesman Sean Spicer held an impromptu press availability outside the White House. They suggested Trump was persuaded to take the step by Justice Department officials and a scathing memo, written by Rosenstein, criticizing the director's role in the Clinton investigation.
Comey firing fueled by Trump's fury at FBI Russia probe
Mr Trump has expressed repeated frustration into the enquiry into the alleged Russian ties, insisting it is based on "fake news". President Bill Clinton dismissed William Sessions amid allegations of ethical lapses in 1993.
"Our story is consistent", she said.
On the Senate floor, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell noted that Democrats had repeatedly condemned Mr Comey in the past, even calling for his removal.
As McCabe testified before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing Thursday, an unexpected guest arrived at the panel's offices: Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
Trump told NBC he had asked Comey once over dinner and twice by telephone whether he was under investigation in the Russian Federation matter.
As the crisis over Comey's firing plays out, here are six things to know about Rosenstein.
One who did last week was Representative Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc.).
Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores denied that Comey had asked Rosenstein for more resources for the Russian Federation investigation. On Monday, the President met with the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General and they discussed reasons for removing the Director.
The president fired Comey the following day.
And in that vein, Mr Rosenstein's memo comprises a litany of criticism over Mr Comey's failure to follow rules and procedures.
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