TRUMP: Oh, it’s — well, it’s totally classified. And he also leaked the memos which are classified. Nobody unclassified them.
And those memos were about me and they’re phony memos. He didn’t write those memos accurately. He put a lot of phony stuff.
For instance, I went to Russia for a day or so — a day or two because I own the Miss Universe pageant. So, I went there to watch it because it was near Moscow.
So I go to Russia — now, I did go there — everybody knows. The locks are there, the planes are there.
He said I didn’t stay there a night. Of course, I stayed there. I stayed there a very short period of time but, of course, I stayed.
Well, his memo said I left immediately. I never said that. I never said I left immediately.
So he said — and you know, the funny thing, he does these memos and then fake news CNN who’s a total fake — you know, they give Hillary Clinton the questions to the debate and nobody — can you imagine, by the way, if you gave me the questions to a debate? They would have you out of business –
KILMEADE: Yes.
TRUMP: — and they’d have me — you better get out of this campaign. They don’t even bring it up.
I mean, CNN – fake news CNN actually gave the questions to the –
KILMEADE: Yes, but don’t worry about them.
EARHARDT: I want to ask you –
TRUMP: No, no — no, no, but think of it. How bad is that?
So anyway — so Comey leaked and, by the way, also what he did with CNN in order to placate them, you saw that whole scenario. This is a big mistake, this book.
He is guilty of crimes and if we had a Justice Department that was doing their job instead of spending $8 million trying to find –
DOOCY: It’s your Justice Department. Mr. President — Mr. President, you’re the Republican in charge –
TRUMP: You’re right, yes, you’re right.
DOOCY: You’ve got a Republican running it.
TRUMP: But here’s what — I answer this all the time.
Because of the fact that they have this witch hunt going on with people in the Justice Department that shouldn’t be there — they have a witch hunt against the President of the United States going on — I’ve taken the position — and I don’t have to take this position and maybe I’ll change — that I will not be involved with the Justice Department. I will wait until this is over.
It’s a total — it’s all lies and it’s a horrible thing that’s going on.
KILMEADE: Yes.
TRUMP: A horrible thing and yet, I’ve accomplished, with all of this going on, more than any president in the first year in our history. And everybody –
DOOCY: OK.
TRUMP: Even the enemies and the haters admit that.
EARHARDT: Right.
TRUMP: We have accomplished more than any president in the first year, by far. If you look at regulations, and the big tax cuts, and Judge Gorsuch — so many things — and many other judges.
But the big thing — the tax cuts, the regulations — nobody’s done what we’ve done — what I’ve done despite what’s going on.
So I’m very disappointed in my Justice Department but because of the fact that it’s going under, and I think you’ll understand this, I have decided that I won’t be involved. I may change my mind at some point because what’s going on is a disgrace. It’s an absolute –
KILMEADE: All right.
TRUMP: — disgrace.
And by the way, the only collusion is the collusion with the Democrats and the Russians. You take a look at what’s going on there. They wouldn’t even give their server — the DNC, Democratic National Committee, wouldn’t even give its server to the FBI.
So what kind of an FBI — they break down doors for Paul Manafort early in the morning. His wife is in bed like at five or six in the morning. And they undo the lock for Michael Cohen early in the morning.
And yet, they walk into the DNC and they won’t give them the server. They said we’re not giving you the server. Oh, OK, we’ll leave.
That’s not the FBI. That’s a fix.
KILMEADE: Let’s talk about Michael Cohen.
Yesterday, through his attorney, he’s going to be taking the Fifth. What’s your reaction to that being that you worked with him for a couple of decades –
TRUMP: I did. He –
KILMEADE: — as your attorney.
TRUMP: He’s a good person. He’s a great guy.
KILMEADE: What’s at stake for you, Mr. President?
TRUMP: Brian, you know Michael. Michael’s been on your show, I’m sure, a lot. You know, Michael –
KILMEADE: We know.
TRUMP: — is a good person.
Let me just tell you that Michael is in business. He’s really a businessman at fairly big businesses, I understand. And I don’t know his business but this doesn’t have to do with me.
Michael is a businessman. He’s got a business. He also practices law.
I would say probably the big thing is his business and they’re looking at something having to do with his business. I have nothing to do with his business.
I can tell you he’s a good guy. He sometimes –
KILMEADE: But isn’t your business — isn’t his business your attorney, Mr. President?
TRUMP: I have many, many — just so you understand, I have many attorneys. I have attorneys — sadly, I have so many attorneys you wouldn’t even believe it.
DOOCY: How many — how much of your — Mr. President, how much of your legal work was handled by Michael Cohen?
TRUMP: Well, he has a percentage of my overall legal work — a tiny, tiny little fraction. But, Michael would represent me and represent me on some things.
He represents me — like with this crazy Stormy Daniels deal he represented me. And, you know, from what I see he did absolutely nothing wrong. There were no campaign funds going into this –
EARHARDT: Then why is he pleading the Fifth?
TRUMP: — which would have been a problem.
Because he’s got other things. He’s got businesses and from what I understand they’re looking at his businesses, and I hope he’s in great shape.
KILMEADE: Yes.
TRUMP: But he’s got businesses and his lawyers probably told him to do that.
But I’m not involved and I’m not involved — and I’ve been told I’m not involved.
KILMEADE: Right, Mr. –
EARHARDT: Right.
TRUMP: That just came out of the newspapers.
EARHARDT: Mr. President –
TRUMP: I’ve been told I’m not involved in that.
EARHARDT: We want to get to Kanye West. He tweeted that he loves you, that you’re his brother, and –