FBI Director Christopher Wray announced on Wednesday that he will resign before President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month, following weeks of consideration.
EKO HOT BLOG reports that Wray’s decision comes amid Trump’s indication that he would remove Wray from his position. Trump has already nominated Kash Patel, a vocal critic of the FBI, to lead the agency. Patel has called for “dramatically” reducing the FBI’s authority.
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Wray, who was nominated by Trump in 2017 for a 10-year term, has faced significant criticism from Republicans, particularly due to the FBI’s investigations into the former president after he left office.
Speaking at the FBI meeting on Wednesday, Wray said: “I’ve decided the right thing for the bureau is for me to serve until the end of the current administration in January and then step down.”
“In my view, this is the best way to avoid dragging the bureau deeper into the fray, while reinforcing the values and principles that are so important to how we do our work,” Wray added.
He received a standing ovation after his remarks, with some members of the audience moved to tears, according to an unnamed official speaking to the Associated Press.
Trump appointed Wray as FBI Director after dismissing his predecessor, James Comey, following the FBI’s investigations into alleged connections between the 2016 Trump campaign and Russia.
At the time of the appointment, Trump praised Wray, a Yale Law School graduate, as a man of “impeccable credentials.”
However, in recent years, Wray has fallen out of favour with the president-elect after the FBI played a key role in the federal investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents, a case that has since been closed.
Trump said Wray’s resignation was “a great day for America”.
“It will end the Weaponization of what has become known as the United States Department of Injustice,” he said on Truth Social. “We will now restore the rule of law for all Americans.”
Following his election to a second term, Trump said his pick for FBI director would be Patel – a former aide who has been a steadfast supporter of the incoming Republican president.
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