An internal "climate survey" conducted by the FBI shows former Director James Comey enjoyed widespread support inside the bureau before his ouster by President Donald Trump in May.
The results of three years of the survey, posted on the FBI's website Wednesday, show Comey routinely scoring above a 4 out of 5 on questions about his leadership and conduct from 2015 to 2017.
In 2016 Comey scored a perfect 5 from respondents when they were asked if he "represents the FBI well." In 2017 respondents gave an average of 4.47 when asked if they had "trust and confidence" in Comey as a leader. Comey's lowest score on the survey, from 2016, was 3.58 and came when respondents were asked if Comey "works with or addresses leaders or employees who are struggling." (The FBI said a score between 3.0 and 3.8 "indicate positive feedback in these areas with potential for improvement," and scores above 3.81 are considered to reflect "success.")
The survey results appear to contradict statements from Trump, who said after Comey's firing in May that he was "very unpopular with most people."
"Look he's a show boat. He's a grand stander. The FBI has been in turmoil. You know that, I know that. Everybody knows that. You take a look at the FBI a year ago, it was in virtual turmoil, less than a year ago, it hasn't recovered from that," Trump told NBC News then.
In congressional testimony in June, Comey said the Trump administration "chose to defame [him] and, more importantly, the FBI by saying that the organization was in disarray, that it was poorly led, that the workforce had lost confidence in its leader."
"Those were lies, plain and simple, and I am sorry that the FBI workforce had to hear them and I'm so sorry that the American people were told them," Comey said.