Protesters gathered at the White House today to protest against President Donald Trump's dismissal of FBI Director James Comey and call for a special prosecutor to examine Trump's presidential campaign's possible collusion with Russia to sway the 2016 election.

The Republican president's abrupt move stunned Washington and was swiftly condemned by Democrats and by some in his own party. Senior Democrats pressed for an independent investigation into the Russia issue.

In the White House as he met with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in the Oval Office, Trump was asked by reporters why he fired Comey, responding, "He wasn't doing a good job, very simply."

Outside the White House, hundreds of protesters carried posters criticizing Trump and calling for an independent investigation.

The Trump administration said yesterday Comey's firing was over his handling of an election-year FBI probe into then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server during her time as secretary of state.

Many Democrats have criticized Comey's management of that investigation, but they sharply questioned the timing of his dismissal, given that Trump could have acted soon after taking office on Jan. 20 and that he has repeatedly criticized the FBI and congressional probes into alleged Russian meddling in the presidential election.

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