Mr. Comey goes to Chicago

Somebody's happy about his book sales!

Shame on me for taking so long to write up my big Comey Day!

Although it has been more like Comey Week...or Comey Fortnight, hasn't it? Give his publisher credit for knowing how to promote a book, because he has been everywhere. (Not that I'm complaining.) And it has certainly paid off because A Higher Loyalty sits atop the New York Times (which is not failing, despite what you might have heard) best sellers list! #1 with a bullet, baby! 

I've enjoyed watching his numerous interviews, and I find that he comes across as honest, credible, and genuinely funny. (Your mileage may vary because I am quite biased.) That held true in Chicago, which was the first stop on his nationwide book tour. 

It was a beautiful spring day in Chicago, with nice temperatures and bright sunshine. After we checked in at our hotel, we relaxed a bit before heading out for dinner. We had decided that pizza sounded good, so we went to Giordano's and had a small deep dish pizza. It had been a long time since we had deep dish pizza and it tasted so good! I could eat some of that right now. 

Then we made our way to the Harris Theater and after Ken chatted up some of the staff, we found the best place to wait before they opened the doors. Much of the floor was reserved for VIP ticket holders so we would have had to sit in the back. The staff recommended the balcony, so after picking up our books, we waited up there for the doors to open. We had a couple of drinks while we chatted with some of the other people in line and Ken and I joked that it looked like we might have been the youngest people in the theater—and we're no spring chickens! So is it older Democrats who are drawn to Comey? Based on the Chicago audience make-up, yes. 

But it's hard to tell. He seems to be mostly reviled by those on the right, but there is a fair measure of those on the left who also can't stand him. He is a bit of an enigma. 

The Handsome Stringbean of Justice. He really is tall.

We ended up in the front row of the balcony and had a great view! There were no pictures or video allowed, but Ken managed to sneak in a couple towards the end. (Shhh, don't tell anyone!)

I had my notebook all ready to go because I planned on taking copious notes. He was introduced, came out to strong applause, and stood at the front of the stage and spoke without notes for about a half an hour. I wrote exactly one thing down and then my note-taking plan went out the window because I was so fascinated by what he was saying! 

What was my note? "Melting like sand at the beach." I have no idea what that was in reference to but I guess I just liked the way he said it! 

He spoke of a lot of things that were in the book (which I had finished the day before), and seemed relaxed and very comfortable speaking that way. I am kind of in awe of people who can do that because I would be a nervous wreck. No podium to stand behind? Nothing to hold onto? Just your hands waving all over the place or hanging down at your sides? That is the stuff of nightmares for me! He just held his hands in front of him or gestured as he made a point. So he's good at what he does. Of course, when you're a federal prosecutor, I suppose you learn to be comfortable speaking in front of people. Or at least how to do it effectively. 

After his opening remarks, he sat down for an interview with a woman from the Chicago Humanities Festival, Marilynn Thoma. She did a very nice job and it was a fun and interesting talk. Again, he seemed relaxed, and her questions got him to expound a little on various topics. Then it was time for a few audience questions. Those of us with tickets had gotten an email asking for question submissions, so I made sure to submit one. 

First question. Not mine. 

Second question. Not mine. 

Third question.

Beth R.! That's me! 

MINE!!!! Mine mine mine all mine! I think the other two questions were Anonymous, but I had included my name, so there I was, Beth R., right up there on the screen. I managed not to leap out of my seat and yell, "THAT'S MY QUESTION!" But it was close. As Ken put it, I was "a hot mess." Guilty as charged! In fact, I was so excited that his response didn't even register. I had to ask Ken later. It was, he would "consider it." 

Now, obviously, I doubt that either a newly-elected Democratic president, or the current "president" if re-elected (I just mentally threw up), would choose him to lead the F.B.I. again. He would be a very controversial pick and would get a lot more opposition than he did the first time he was confirmed as Director. He was confirmed 93-1. However, I think it spoke to his abiding love for the F.B.I. It sounds like it was his ultimate job and he looked forward to staying for his ten-year term. It's obvious that he still loves all the people there and the vast majority love him back. 

As he has come across in his interviews, I found him consistent in his remarks and genuinely concerned with the disdain for facts and truth under our current administration. He is greatly disturbed by the attacks on our justice and law enforcement systems, as we all should be. Constructive criticism and proper oversight are essential; tearing down these institutions is detrimental to a properly functioning society. He cautions against becoming numb to the daily assault on our norms and said over and over that what we are seeing is not normal. He said we must not become inured to that. He is encouraged, however, by the current engagement of citizens, especially young people. He thinks everyone should pay attention, get involved, make our voices heard. I couldn't agree more! 

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Director Comey. I found him interesting, funny, and even a little bit charming. Disagree with me if you want. But it's how I feel. He got a standing ovation when the evening was over, so I think he charmed a few others besides me!

I walked out of the theater on Cloud Nine (those two vodka tonics didn't hurt) and on the way back to the hotel, we stopped to see Cloud Gate, AKA The Bean. I had never seen it at night, and found out that the brightly lit skyline of Chicago is reflected in its shiny surface. 

It was a beautiful sight and the perfect ending to a wonderful day. 

Beth's Books: A Higher Loyalty

Those who know me understand that I am more than a little biased towards James Comey. I find him credible and honorable. I will do my best to write this review in the spirit of fairness and openness and—

OMG I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH!

Okay, okay, I'll admit that there is a fair amount of confirmation bias in my love for this book. I despise the "president" and I like Comey very much. Nothing in this book changed my feelings or thoughts about either. 

What struck me is that Comey seems very genuine. Whether he writes about his experiences with bullies when he was a kid, or about when he behaved in a bullying manner when he got to college because of 'groupthink' (something he says he remains ashamed of even all these years later), you can tell that it was part of what shaped his worldview. I have said all along that Trump is a schoolyard bully and Comey seems to have had that feeling, too. "All bullies are largely the same. They threaten the weak to feed some insecurity that rages inside them." Very true. 

Comey admits to struggling as an adult with ego and over-confidence. It seems obvious that he also has enough self-awareness to realize that about himself and does his best to counteract that by encouraging others to confront him and push back against his preconceived notions, whether it is his wife or President Obama. 

I found him quite funny and enjoyed the stories about the "presidential apple" for his youngest daughter, learning tips for cooking turkeys from Martha Stewart's shows, and especially his recounting of the infamous curtain incident when he tried to blend into the curtains in the Blue Room. His abiding love for the FBI is also apparent (he even dedicated the book to all the men and women of the Bureau). As someone on Twitter said, "Get yourself a man who loves you the way Comey loves the FBI." 

I also found him deeply philosophical as he recounted his reasoning behind the decisions he made during the 2016 election. I've felt all along that he made the choices he did in order to protect the nonpartisanship and integrity of both the FBI and the DOJ, and he talks about that at length. I think he really was faced with a Scylla and Charybdis moment, not once, but a few times, and he made the only decision he could. 

I get frustrated at hearing the pundits on both sides say that "he should have done this" or "he shouldn't have said that." Or he shouldn't have said it when he did. He has explained over and over how he came to the decisions he did (although there is still some classified stuff out there that he can't disclose). I find his thought processes credible and well-reasoned in the context of doing what was best for the FBI/DOJ and their nonpartisanship. It is easy to second guess someone when you've never been in such a position. There is also a ridiculous amount of semantics involved, especially among those illiterate in legalese. I am certainly not literate in that language but when he explained the subtle difference in legal terms and why they matter, I understood. 

I also enjoyed his thoughts on intelligence vs judgment. It's one thing to have the intelligence to understand facts and figures, to understand something intellectually, but it has to be tempered with good judgment and the ability to look at a problem from other perspectives. He recounts a great conversation with President Obama in which they discussed the Black Lives Matter/Blue Lives Matter movements and the conflicts between young black men and law enforcement. They each got each other to see certain views from other vantage points. That is the mark of true thinkers, the ability for self-reflection, self-awareness, and the ability to approach things with a sense of humility and accept that there are other ways of looking at things that wouldn't occur to you because of your own life experience. 

Oh, how I love to have those types of discussions myself! Going deeper than the easy, superficial talking points and bouncing ideas off of each other. Getting someone to understand your viewpoint and getting them to understand yours, and finding points of consensus when you realize that you both hold many of the same thoughts. We seem to have lost that recently. I miss it. 

I admire and respect some of the same people that he does, including President Obama and James Clapper. I also despise some of the same people that he seems to, including Dick Cheney (who comes across every bit as evil and humorless as I've always thought) and the current "president." Comey doesn't use the word 'despise,' but his disdain and visceral dislike for both comes across loud and clear. 

I think Comey is right when he says that while Trump might not be medically unfit to serve, he is morally unfit. He is devoid of ethics and does not possess the ability to provide ethical leadership. Comey was reminded over and over of his dealings with Mafia bosses earlier in his career and I think the comparison is a suitable one. Trump cares not one whit about societal and political norms, nor about defending the Constitution. He cares only about how things will affect him and about uncompromising loyalty to HIM. People like Comey and professionals in the FBI and DOJ are utterly foreign and incomprehensible to him: people who took an oath to the country and the Constitution, not to any particular person. 

In interviews, Comey has said that he sees this as a situation where we need to put our moral and ethical values—who we are as Americans and human beings—above partisan politics and issues, whether it's gun control or tax cuts. I couldn't agree more. I disagree with the right on so many things but can we get back to the place where we all agree that we value the basic premises of free speech and other Constitutional rights above partisanship? I believe we must if we are to move forward and be our best selves. 

I think that a leader who expects fealty to himself rather than respect for the rule of law cannot be part of that equation. 

Vote accordingly, Citizens.