GOP Sen Ernst on Comey: I Respect Men and Women Who Do Their Jobs a ‘in a Nonpartisan Manner’

Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) explained why she hoped former FBI Director James Comey had done his job “in a non-partisan manner.”

Partial transcript as follows:

TODD:  I want to get you to respond to this criticism. James Comey laid out in all of Congress in his book on the attacks of the law enforcement community and he writes this, “I know there are men and woman of good conscience on both sides of the aisle who understand this, but not everyone is speaking out and they must ask themselves to what or to whom they owe a higher loyalty and their silence is complicit and it is a choice and somewhere deep down they must know that.’ Do you accept this criticism that you and others have not spoken out enough in support of law enforcement as the president has at times rhetorically undermined law enforcement?

ERNST: Well, I think that we do stand behind those men and women of our various agencies, and those that are truly non-partisan and those that are working for the good of the American people. I have not read James Comey’s book. I’m sure at some point it will come out and we’ll be able to view that, but I would say that as the head of an agency there is a need for a level of respect going both ways. So I respect the men and women that do their job and do it in a non-partisan manner, and I wish that we had seen a little bit more from some of the heads of our agencies in the federal government, as well.

Follow Pam Key On Twitter @pamkeyNEN

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