President Trump has confidence in FBI Director James Comey, despite his claim that Comey gave Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton a “free pass” during the 2016 presidential campaign, his top spokesman said Wednesday. 

“The president has confidence in the director,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer told reporters. 

Spicer said the president’s Tuesday night tweets were directed at Clinton’s comments made earlier that day, in which she blamed her loss to Trump in part on Comey’s public statements about a federal investigation into her use of a private email server while secretary of State. 

{mosads}“If the election had been on Oct. 27, I would be your president,” she said at a Women for Women event in New York, referencing the day before Comey sent a letter informing Congress that the FBI had discovered new emails that were potentially relevant to the probe. 

“I’m a Patriots fan,” Spicer said of Clinton’s claim that she would have won if the election timing was different.

“If games ended in the third quarter, a different team would have been here last week.”

The New England Patriots visited the White House last week to celebrate a come-from-behind Super Bowl victory.

Trump responded to Clinton’s claim in a late-night string of tweets Tuesday.

“FBI Director Comey was the best thing that ever happened to Hillary Clinton in that he gave her a free pass for many bad deeds!” Trump tweeted.

“The phony Trump/Russia story was an excuse used by the Democrats as justification for losing the election. Perhaps Trump just ran a great campaign?” he continued. 

Spicer added Wednesday that “it’s somewhat sad” that people are still debating the outcome of the election.

Appearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday, Comey stood by his decision to announce that the bureau had resumed its investigation in October, but told the panel, “It makes me mildly nauseous to think we had an impact on the election.”