James Comey Proves That, Yes, He Is ‘Reinhold Niebuhr’… on Twitter
Former FBI director and perennial cause célèbre James Comey finally confirmed that, yes, he is on Twitter.
The sixth and most recent tweet of the “Reinhold Niebuhr,” account — long suspected to be him — included an image of Comey in Iowa
“Goodbye Iowa,” he wrote. “On the road home. Gotta get back to writing. Will try to tweet in useful ways.”
Goodbye Iowa. On the road home. Gotta get back to writing. Will try to tweet in useful ways. pic.twitter.com/DCbu3Yvqt3
– Reinhold Niebuhr (@FormerBu) October 23, 2017
Shortly after the image was posted, Comey friend Benjamin Wittes tweeted out a confirmation.
Ok, in light of this latest tweet, I will confirm that @FormerBu is, in fact, James Comey himself. https://t.co/6QbhOG7Qzp
– Benjamin Wittes (@benjaminwittes) October 23, 2017
Also Read: James Comey Speech Shouted Down by Howard University Student Protesters (Video)
It’s not entirely clear why the former director was in Iowa. While the trip might suggest presidential aspirations, the Des Moines Register speculated that he may have been in town for a more prosaic reason: the birthday of an in-law.
Per the Register:
Well, Comey is married to Patrice Failor, an Iowa native whose brother is Ed Failor Jr., a top staffer for the Republican caucus in the Iowa Senate.
Ed Failor’s Facebook page happens to note that his father, Ed Failor Sr., celebrated his 90th birthday over the weekend, just the kind of family celebration an out-of-state daughter and son-in-law would come back for.
At some point in the past, Comey’s handle was changed from @projectexile7 to @FormerBu, which Gizmodo speculated was short for “former bureau.”
The tech blog, formerly part of the Gawker Media empire, first fingered the Twitter account as Comey’s back in March after a widely praised investigation by reporter Ashley Feinberg.
Comey — as we now know — was impressed enough at the time to suggest Feinberg take a job with the bureau.
https://t.co/L5ehuMFGat pic.twitter.com/x53gCG7Nvc
– Reinhold Niebuhr (@FormerBu) March 30, 2017
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