FBI Director Christopher Wray confirmed Wednesday that he will resign by President-elect Donald Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration.
Wray announced he would step down just seven years into his 10-year term, following outside pressure to resign, particularly from Trump. President Trump instead decided to nominate Kash Patel to the position and indicated to Wray that he would either resign early or be fired.
“It goes without saying, but I'm going to say it anyway: This is not easy for me.”
“My goal is to stay focused on our mission, the essential work you do for the American people every day. In my opinion, this will drag the office deeper into the fray.” It's the best way to avoid this and at the same time strengthen the role of the organization.'These are the values and principles that are so important to how we work,' Ray said. said.
“It goes without saying, but I'm going to say it anyway: This is not easy for me,” he continued. “I love this place, I love our mission, and I love our people — but my focus has always been on doing what's right for us and for the FBI. It is.”
Trump nominated Wray to succeed him as FBI director in 2017 during his first term as president. At the time, President Trump fired former FBI Director James Comey, who in 2016 launched a now-revealed investigation into disinformation in Russia.
Mr. Wray was overwhelmingly confirmed by the Senate in 2017, but Mr. Trump's nominee may have an even harder time this time around.
Mr. Patel himself traveled to the Hill this week to meet with senators and close a vote on his confirmation. Other Trump nominees, most notably Pentagon Secretary Pete Hegseth, have faced considerable scrutiny and pushback from establishment Republicans in the Senate.
Trump's nominees, such as Patel and Hegseth, would only lose three Republican votes, assuming Vice President-elect J.D. Vance appears on the ballot as a tie-breaking candidate.
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