Leahy, Sanders, Calls FBI Firing Shocking, Troubling

MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont says no one should accept President Donald Trump's "absurd justification" that he's now concerned that FBI Director James Comey treated Hillary Clinton unfairly in his decision to fire him.

In his brief letter Tuesday to Comey, Trump said the firing was necessary to restore "public trust and confidence" in the FBI. The administration paired the letter with a scathing review by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein of how Comey handled the investigation into Clinton's email practices.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent, said he finds it "deeply troubling" that Trump's decision comes a day after testimony by former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates on Russia's ties to the Trump campaign and before Casey was to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee.