President Trump warns fired FBI chief Comey over media leaks
Comey was leading inquiry into alleged Trump campaign-Russia ties
President's account of their dinner conversation differs from people close to Comey
Democrats call for an independent special prosecutor
Mr Trump has just defended his decision to fire Mr Comey for the first time on camera.
Here's a transcript of exactly what was said:
Q: Mr. President, why did you fire Director Comey?
"He wasn't doing a good job. Very simply. He was not doing a good job."
Q: Did it affect your meeting with the Russians today?
"Not at all."
The rest of the world may still be trying to get its head around the shock firing of Mr Comey, but Mr Trump is certainly not showing any strain.
Here he is in a photo shared by the Russian embassy in the US with ambassador Sergei Kislyak, suggesting it was taken today:
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Mr Trump was known to have been meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the White House today. Here's a picture of them together:
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But it is the timing of the smiling shot with the Russian ambassador in particular which may raise a few eyebrows among Mr Trump's critics.
Mr Kislyak's name has been dragged into the investigation into the links between the Trump administration and Russia.
You can read more about the scandal Mr Trump just can't shake here.
The New York Times has just published this report:
"Days before he was fired, James B Comey, the former FBI director, asked the justice department for a significant increase in money and personnel for the bureau’s investigation into Russia’s interference in the presidential election..."
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Audio: Senator Lindsey Graham on the controversy
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham says "it's odd" that there is a controversy over Mr Comey's firing, since both political parties had called for his removal at different times.
He said he is "100% convinced" that Russia interfered in the US election - but did not affect the outcome - and he's sure the investigation won't be affected by the controversy.
"If you think that dismissing the director is going to end the investigation into Russia, you're wrong," he said.
Reporters entering the Oval Office discovered President Trump was with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who served under presidents Nixon and Ford.
The White House pool seems to have been taken by complete surprise.
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Vice-President Mike Pence has been speaking to reporters on Capitol Hill.
He said the decision to remove Mr Comey was not related to the Russia probe, and was instead based on ensuring that the FBI had the trust of the public.
"Comey had lost the confidence of the American people," he said - and that firing him was "simply the right decision".
He also told the media President Trump is already evaluating candidates to replace Mr Comey.
Here's a bit more from Mr Pence:
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The chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Republican Richard Burr, said there is no need for a special prosecutor "at this time", according to Reuters news agency.
But he also said the firing of Mr Comey could "slow" the intelligence committee's investigation "temporarily".
Senator Burr earlier expressed "concern" over the way Mr Comey's dismissal was handled.
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...and the internet is not impressed.
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Mr Trump's supporters are seemingly unworried by his change of heart over Mr Comey - who he once praised for having the "guts" to handle the Clinton email scandal - and are more concerned about the reaction from Democrats.
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Meanwhile, Republican Mike Huckabee is facing ridicule on social media for a scathing attack on well-known news network... CCN.
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BBC Minute have put together a 60-second summary just for you:
What led to James Comey's sacking?
Image source, AFPYou'd think after all those years on The Apprentice, Mr Trump would have it down pat.
But the way Mr Comey was fired has shocked people almost as much as the sacking itself.
So let BBC business reporter Simon Atkinson take you through how it should have been handled.
The World at One
BBC Radio 4
Richard Painter was chief White House ethics lawyer in the George W Bush administration, and believes James Comey's dismissal was "a political decision by the president".
He told BBC Radio 4's The World at One that he believed the real reason for the sacking "was because the FBI was in the middle of an investigation" into (alleged) links between the Trump campaign and Russia during the election.
The administration says Mr Comey was fired over his handling of the inquiry into Hillary Clinton's emails.
Richard Painter: He cannot appropriately fire the FBI director while the FBI director is investigating him
The BBC's Franz Strasser has spotted the vice-president making his way through Washington:
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Our Reality Check team has been busy trying to answer the biggest questions of the day: Can Donald Trump really fire the director of the FBI, and what happens next?
Read their answers here.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov have just emerged in front of the press, but didn't answer questions about Mr Comey's sacking:
Lavrov sarcastically asks, 'Comey was fired?'
The US president has gone on the attack against Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat.
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Here's a taste of what may have set that chain of tweets off:
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Here's an interesting graph showing how long other FBI directors have survived in the role since 1978.
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Notably, it was Bill Clinton who cut William S. Sessions' time in the role short in 1993.
You can read the Los Angeles Times' article about that historic sacking here, external.
Speculation is growing around who might be the FBI's new director, following Mr Comey's shock removal.
The Associated Press news agency profiles some possible successors:
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More pressure from Democrats (see 12:02 entry) to appoint an independent prosecutor into the alleged ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Sen Tim Kaine of Virginia (who was Mrs Clinton's running mate), tweets:
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Politico, quoting two anonymous Trump advisers, external, said the president "had grown enraged by the Russia investigation" and was "frustrated by his inability to control the mushrooming narrative around Russia".
Quote MessageHe repeatedly asked aides why the Russia investigation wouldn’t disappear and demanded they speak out for him. He would sometimes scream at television clips about the probe, one adviser said.
The Wall Street Journal, external, meanwhile, said Mr Trump was unhappy with the media's focus on the FBI director.
Quote MessageHe viewed Mr Comey as eager to step in front of TV cameras and questioned whether his expanding media profile was warping his view of the Russia investigation, the officials said.