Trump drafted the characteristically belligerent letter, with help from adviser Stephen Miller, from his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. But the missive never made it to Comey. The Times reports:

The letter, drafted in May, was met with opposition from Donald F. McGahn II, the White House counsel, who believed that its angry, meandering tone was problematic, according to interviews with a dozen administration officials and others briefed on the matter. Among Mr. McGahn's concerns were references to private conversations the president had with Mr. Comey, including times when the F.B.I. director told Mr. Trump he was not under investigation in the F.B.I.'s ongoing Russia inquiry.

Mr. McGahn successfully blocked the president from sending the letter to Mr. Comey, which Mr. Trump had composed with Stephen Miller, one of the president's top political advisers. But a copy was given to the deputy attorney general, Rod J. Rosenstein, who then drafted his own letter. Mr. Rosenstein's letter was ultimately used as the Trump administration's public rationale for Mr. Comey's firing, which was that Mr. Comey mishandled the investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email server.

Trump's daughter Ivanka and son-in-law, Jared Kushner were also in Bedminster that weekend, and Kushner was reportedly in favor of firing Comey. (The Times notes that rain forced Trump to cancel his tee time with legendary golfer Greg Norman, contributing to his noxious mood.)