Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said he believes Christopher Wray has neglected his “fundamental responsibilities” as FBI director, saying he believes Wray is neglecting his “fundamental responsibilities” as FBI director. “I have no confidence,” he said in a scathing letter.
“For the sake of our country, it is time for you and your deputy to move on to the next chapter of your lives. I have spent my career fighting for transparency, and I will always fight for transparency. “I've called on the people in the government who have come.'” Grassley also mentioned FBI Deputy Director Paul Abate in a letter to Wray on Monday morning. “I have to do it again now for the sake of public record.”
Mr. Grassley continued: “I must express a vote of no confidence in your continued leadership of the FBI. President-elect Trump has already announced his intention to nominate a candidate to replace you. The Senate will carefully consider its choices, in part because I have seen enough and I hope your successors will learn from these mistakes.'' Commissioner Grassley continued.
The letter from the longtime Republican senator comes as Kash Patel, President Trump's nominee to head the FBI, headed to the Capitol on Monday to meet with lawmakers, including Grassley, to rally support for her confirmation. Submitted in.
Who is Kash Patel? Trump's nominee for FBI director has a long history of vowing to take down the “deep state.”
Sen. Chuck Grassley at the U.S. Capitol after a Senate luncheon on September 24, 2024. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc, via Getty Images)
Before the Senate could potentially confirm Patel as FBI director under the second Trump administration, Wray would have to resign or be fired, as he is in the middle of a 10-year term that ends in 2027. be.
Mr. Grassley's lengthy 11-page letter to Wray detailed specific examples of Wray's “failures” as FBI director, and Mr. Grassley said, “I am deeply grateful for my confidence in your leadership and for the support of others in Congress. The trust and hopes that many people had in you have been shattered.” The Iowa senator previously claimed that Wray: “Failed” as FBI Director President Trump said this in a social media message posted the day after he nominated Patel to head the FBI.
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Grassley cited the FBI's “unprecedented raid” on Trump's Mar-a-Lago mansion in Florida in August 2022 for classified documents as an example of Wray's failure. The Republican senator noted that about 30 armed operatives who were authorized to “use deadly force if necessary” to execute the search warrants took part in the raid.
Investigators “even searched the former first lady's clothing drawers,” Grassley continued.
July 12, 2023: FBI Director Christopher Wray arrives for a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, DC. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“This raid was conducted despite serious doubts about its necessity. Despite the liberal press, President Trump was clearly cooperating with the investigation. Months before the escalation, he voluntarily handed over 15 boxes of documents,” Grassley continued, adding that the former director: State Rep. Hillary Clinton faced such a raid “even though she and her staff mishandled highly classified information while using a non-governmental server.” There wasn't.
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He also accused the FBI of acting as “an accomplice in the Democratic Party's disinformation campaign aimed at undermining my investigation into corruption allegations in the Biden family.”
“On August 6, 2020, as Senator Ron Johnson and I were finishing up our report on the Biden family's financial ties to foreign governments and suspected foreign entities, you bowed to pressure from Congressional Democrats and The leadership provided unnecessary clarification in an attempt to falsely label our investigation as Russian disinformation.”
The FBI has long been accused of politicking in the face of Democratic concerns over Kash Patel's nomination.
“That press conference contained information we already knew and information that was not relevant to our investigation of Biden. As expected, on May 1, 2021, the Washington Post did just that, falsely labeling our research as Russian disinformation. ” he continued.
Sen. Chuck Grassley arrives for a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing at the Capitol on September 6, 2023. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
He added that the FBI “turned a blind eye to bribery allegations” against Biden when he was vice president, Biden's son Hunter Biden, and Ukrainian officials.
“Consistent with that FBI failure, another clear example of the FBI breaking its commitments under your leadership is to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden into bribery allegations, while intensely investigating former President Trump. An inexcusable failure to do so. You have repeatedly claimed that you will ensure that the FBI's investigation will serve justice “without fear, favor or partisan influence.” But the FBI, under your watch, had incriminating information against President Biden for three years before I revealed the existence of records outlining those allegations, and it is doing nothing to investigate it. Neither did I. ”
Mr. Grassley said that under Mr. Wray's leadership, the FBI showed “blatant disregard for Congressional oversight,” including withholding information to members of Congress related to “the FBI's ongoing mismanagement of sexual harassment complaints” by female employees. He also claimed to have shown.
“This request was not made on a whim. It was based on a credible whistleblower's revelation that hundreds of FBI employees have resigned or resigned to avoid accountability for sexual misconduct.” wrote Grassley.
Grassley added that the FBI “refused” to provide information to lawmakers about the vetting process for Afghan nationals amid the Biden administration's failed 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan. The FBI also came under fire from Grassley for “refusing to provide information to Congress” about the FBI's “Richmond Memo,” known as an anti-Catholic memo that portrayed traditional Catholics as violent extremists.
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FBI Director Christopher Wray and Senator Chuck Grassley (Getty Images)
“Your and Deputy Director Abate's failure to take control of the FBI has hindered my work and that of others through multiple Congresses on issues that require timely information, and that the truth on some issues is now available to the American people.” You also demonstrated continued double standards and broken promises,” Grassley wrote in the letter.
Asked about Grassley's letter, the FBI told Fox News Digital: “The FBI has repeatedly demonstrated our commitment to responding to Congressional oversight and being transparent with the American people.”
“Secretary Wray and Deputy Director Abate have taken strong action to ensure accountability in the areas mentioned in the letter and share information about the ever-evolving threat environment facing our nation and the FBI's extraordinary activities. We will continue to work hard.”
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Trump took part in an interview on NBC's “Meet the Press” that aired Sunday, in which the president-elect also criticized Wray and said that “respect for the FBI has declined significantly over the last few years.” .
“He broke into my house. I'm suing the state for that. He broke into Mar-a-Lago. I'm very unhappy with what he did. And the crime is We're at an all-time high. Immigrants are pouring into this country, and as we've been talking about, they're coming from prisons and psychiatric hospitals, and I can't say I'm excited about it.” said during an interview.
Kash Patel is a longtime ally of President Trump and an activist against the “deep state.” (Kash Patel's headshot)
“I certainly can't be happy with him. Look what happened. And when I got shot in the ear, he said, maybe it was shrapnel. The shrapnel was Where does it come from? Does it come from heaven? I don't think so. So we need somebody — you know, I have a lot of respect for the FBI, but my respect for the FBI has really gone down in the last few years. ” Trump continued.
Mr. Wray has not said whether he will voluntarily resign as FBI director, and President Trump is expected to fire him to make room for Mr. Patel.
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Patel is a longtime Trump ally and campaigner against the “deep state,” calling for the firing of “corrupt officials” within the FBI and calling for “aggressive” Congressional oversight of the FBI. He has advocated for a complete overhaul and relocation of the FBI. Washington DC
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment on Grassley's letter, but did not immediately receive a response.
