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The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Christopher Wray, He will have his position available before the second term of US President-elect Donald Trump, according to the agency.
In a statement to staff released Wednesday by the agency, Wray cited a desire to keep the agency out of a protracted dispute with the incoming president, who takes office Jan. 20.
Wray has been a primary target of Trump in recent years, with the former president citing the FBI’s involvement in several investigations into his conduct. It included an execution of a search warrant in August 2022 at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in which agents collected evidence for a possible federal indictment related to the hosting of documents White House classifieds.
The resignation will pave the way for Kash PatelTrump’s controversial choice to take over the agency, though his nomination will still require Senate confirmation. Trump had already confirmed all his plans to fire Wray, whose ten-year appointment in the role did not end until 2027.
“After weeks of careful thought, I have decided that the cabinet is to serve until the end of the current administration in January and then step down,” Wray said in his statement.
“In my view, this is the best way to avoid dragging the Cabinet deeper into the fringes, while reinforcing the values and principles that are so important to how we do our work.”
Trump appointed Patel, who previously served as national security aide and has been a long-standing ally of the former president, earlier this month.
Trump called him a “brilliant lawyer, investigator and America’s first fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, upholding justice and protecting the American people.”
But the appointment prompted concerns, including from within Trump’s own Republican party, about Patel’s fitness for the role.
The firebrand has regularly issued blatant threats to go after political opponents and investigators who have dreamed up Trump and has vowed to purge the FBI of the so-called “deep state” — a conspiracy phrase referring to the belief that secret networks of power are embedded within government.
He has also promised to close the agency’s Washington, DC headquarters.
Legal observers have warned that the agency could lose its independence under Patel, instead becoming an arm of the Trump White House.
Trump praises the resignation
In a statement on his Twitter account after Wray’s announcement, Trump called the resignation a “great day for America.”
Trump again criticized Wray for the Mar-a-Lago search, writing that FBI agents “unlawfully raided my home.” He also accused the director of participating in the “armaonization” of the U.S. justice system, even though legal scholars have regularly said there were legal grounds for the federal cases against Trump.
“Now we will restore the rule of law for all Americans,” Trump wrote. With his signature hyperbole, he later praised Patel as “the most qualified candidate to lead the FBI in the agency’s history.”
A federal judge has since dismissed the classified federal documents case against Trump. It was also a second federal case involving Trump’s role in seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election. dismissed according to the prosecutor’s request. The Justice Department has a longstanding policy of not prosecuting presidents.
The sentencing in the New York state conviction related to the Hush money payments is also likely to be put on hold, and his lawyers have tried to have another state case in Georgia related to the 2020 election dismissed.
Trump himself had nominated Wray in 2017 to replace the FBI director James Comeywho had led an investigation into possible collusion between the Trump 2016 campaign and Russia. At the time, Trump cited that research as part of his decision.
It’s unclear whether Republicans, who hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate, will reach the simple majority they need to confirm Patel next year.
Trump has chosen several controversial figures to run key agencies of his administration, including the Fox News Host Pete Hegseth – who has been accused of being associated with white nationalist movements and of abusing women – i Tulsi Gabbard – who has come under renewed scrutiny for his support for the toppled government of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, as director of national intelligence, among others.
In recent years, opposing parties have used the filibuster to prolong confirmation hearings to polarize candidates.
In November, former congressman from Firebrand Matt Gaetz Trump stepped aside after being nominated for attorney general.
