A Higher Loyalty By Miriam R. Kramer In his fascinating memoir and treatise on leadership, A Higher Loyalty, former FBI Director James Comey discusses his trajectory in government service up until he unwillingly became a political lightning rod during and after the most bitterly contested and partisan presidential election in modern American politics. This work is provocative, substantial, and well worth a reader’s time. She/He gets to know him personally on a philosophical level. Comey became one of the best-known names in America before the 2016 elections, when he announced in late October that the FBI was re-opening an investigation into Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private e-mail server for classified documents. Incurring the wrath of Democrats for potentially swinging the election towards President Donald Trump, Comey then appeared before Congress in June 2017 after Trump sacked him to repudiate Trump’s leadership and call many of his statements false. He testified that the President lied in saying that he was fired because of low morale at the FBI. Comey responded that Trump most likely sacked him because he refused to profess his loyalty to Trump and exert his influence to change the way the FBI was investigating Trump campaign officials’ potential collusion with Russia. Comey also stated that he hoped his testimony would help lead to an independent prosecutor who could investigate those possible ties, understanding that it would be highly difficult for the current Department of Justice to conduct a nonpartisan investigation under the warping influence of any leaders President Trump has endeavored to make loyal only to himself. As a long-time DC-area resident reading A Higher Loyalty, I agreed wholeheartedly with many of Comey’s observations. His difficulties have been intrinsically interwoven with the very nature of our partisan political culture, which is now concentrated to…