Donald Trump Jr. counterprograms James Comey's testimony with defensive tweetstorm

Impact

Twitter watched with bated breath Thursday morning to see if President Donald Trump would use his favorite social media platform to attack James Comey during the former FBI director's testimony in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee. But it was his eldest son Donald Trump Jr. who couldn't resist the urge to go off on a tweetstorm.

In a series of tweets during Comey's testimony, Trump Jr. defended his father and took it upon himself to interpret his father's words for a broader audience.

Referring to the claim that the president beseeched Comey to end the investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn by saying "I hope you can let this go," Trump Jr. tweeted his own interpretation.

"Flynn stuff is BS in context 2 guys talking about a guy they both know well. I hear 'I hope nothing happens but you have to do your job'," he tweeted.

Trump Jr. also claimed that when his father "'orders or tells you to do something there is no ambiguity, you will know exactly what he means." It was an odd point to stress, as Comey testified that he did, in fact, assume to know what the president meant: End the investigation.

Trump Jr. continued to tweet and retweet defenses of his father throughout the early portion of Comey's testimony, while the president kept mum.

One local bar in Washington, D.C., opened early to air Comey's testimony and offered free drinks for the house every time Trump tweeted. No word on whether or libations were offered for tweets from Trump's progeny.

Navigating Trump's America is live blogging James Comey's testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Follow along here.