The nub of the Comey hearing

Tom Cotton: “Do you believe Donald Trump colluded with Russia?” 

James Comey: “It’s a question I don’t think I should answer in open setting.”

Former FBI Director James Comey wanted there to be "no fuzz" on the question of if the Russians hacked the 2016 presidential election. "They did it with purpose, they did it with sophistication, they did it with overwhelming technical efforts.

James Comey: Our judgment, as I recall, is that he was very close to and inevitably going to recuse himself for a variety of reasons. We also were aware of facts that I can't discuss in an open setting that would make his continued engagement in a Russia-related investigation problematic. So we were convinced — in fact, I think we'd already heard that the career people were recommending that he recuse himself, that he was not going to be in contact with Russia-related matters much longer. 

Richard Burr: “Do you sense that the president was trying to obstruct justice or just seek for a way for Mike Flynn to save face given he had already been fired?”

James Comey: “I don't think it's for me to say whether the conversation I had with the president was an effort to obstruct. I took it as a very disturbing thing, very concerning, but that's a conclusion I'm sure the special counsel will work towards to find out the intention and whether that's an offense.”