James Comey did not pledge loyalty to Trump

According to The New York Times, James Comey declined to pledge loyalty to Trump and, instead, offered honesty. The incident took place in a dinner 11 days after Trump took office. It was Trump the one who called Comey to have dinner.

The NYT article is described by AP like this:

The New York Times reports that former FBI Director James Comey declined to pledge loyalty to President Donald Trump during a dinner the two men shared in January.

The newspaper quotes two unnamed Comey associates who say they heard Comey’s account of the dinner.

Comey instead promised Trump “honesty.” When Trump then pressed for “honest loyalty,” Comey told the president, “you will have that,” say the associates, who told the newspaper they agreed to keep the story confidential while Comey was FBI director.

That's not all. The version actually fits with another version that Comey is “somebody unwilling to pledge absolute loyalty to him [Trump].”

AND it fits with Trump's own admission that

Now let's do some math:

1. Trump wants not just loyalty, but sicophants.

PLUS

2. Comey did not agree to be loyal to Trump. Which is good, as he should be loyal to his country, not to a president accused of wrongdoing.

PLUS

3. Comey did not stop the Russia investigation and stepped it up in the weeks leading to his firing.

RESULT?

Trump fires Comey.

That seems more and more like the real reason why Trump fired Comey. And that, I can't say this enough, reeks of obstruction of justice.

By the way; The New York Times points out FBI directors are not supposed to be political loyalists and that's why they have 10-year terms, so they can be independent from the president. So expecting loyalty from Comey would actually violate the spirit of the law.