James Comey's Father: Donald Trump Is 'Sick'

ALLENDALE, NJ — Former FBI Director James Comey's father is a lifelong Republican who once served as a public official in New Jersey. But he's no fan of President Donald Trump.

J. Brien Comey is a former Allendale councilman in Bergen County, where he raised the son whom Trump fired and then reportedly derided as a "nut job." The father wasn't pleased about the firing, and he doesn't believe any of the president's changing reasons for doing so. Trump, he said, has a problem.

"That poor guy is sick, and that guy is president of the United States, believe it or not," J. Brien Comey, 86, said in a telephone interview with Patch.

Trump fired Comey May 9 as the director while the New Jersey native was leading an investigation into possible collusion between the president's campaign workers and Russian agents who worked to turn the 2016 election against Hillary Clinton.

The White House initially blamed the firing on Comey's handling of the probe into Clinton’s use of a private email server. The president said in a letter to Comey that he was being dismissed after a recommendation from the Justice Department's top officials who cited the Clinton investigation.

Later, the president undercut his own letter and the aides who had been spinning the Clinton story for him and settled on an explanation that many had suspected: He fired Comey in large part because of the Russian election probe.

“When I decided to just do it, I said to myself — I said, you know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made-up story,” Trump told NBC News' Lester Holt in an interview, adding fuel to the fire.

The next day, Trump reportedly told Russians visiting the Oval Office that Comey was "crazy" and "a real nut job."

Comey's father called Trump's reasons for his son's dismissal as "nonsense."

"I can't figure that guy out," he said. "He's nuts."

The former Allendale councilman said he voted for a straight Republican ticket in last year's election — almost. He didn't vote for Trump, he said, because he "figured I'd be throwing my vote away."

"I figured I'd lose my vote in five days if I voted for him because he would end up in a home in five days," said J. Brien Comey, who said he believed Trump should be institutionalized. "But he didn't get into a home."

J. Brien Comey said he talks to his son by phone almost every day, but they talk very little about the firing and his FBI work. He said his son is doing fine because "he's solid as a rock."

"He's fine. He'll come out of this better. He did enjoy the job and he was good at it," J. Brien Comey said. "He's not a yes guy. He tells you the truth."

James Comey is also supposed to appear soon before a congressional committee to testify on the firing and the Russian probe.

Will J. Brien Comey be watching on T.V.?

"You better believe it," he said.

Pool photo via Getty Images News/Getty Images