White House expects fast decision on next FBI chief
WASHINGTON — President Trump said he could have a new FBI director in place before he departs for his first overseas trip Friday, an ambitious goal that would give him just a few days to fill one of the most important and sensitive posts in government.
“Even that is possible,” the president said Saturday aboard Air Force One when asked whether he might make a selection before leaving for Saudi Arabia, Israel and the Vatican.
Trump addressed journalists before flying to Lynchburg, Va., where he delivered a commencement speech at Liberty University. Justice Department officials spent the day conducting the first interviews for candidates to replace James Comey, whom Trump fired Tuesday.
Eight contenders interviewed on Saturday, including Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas; acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe; Alice Fisher, a white-collar defense lawyer who previously led the Justice Department’s criminal division; Michael Garcia, a judge on the New York State Court of Appeals who previously served as the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York; Adam Lee, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Richmond field office; U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson, who presides over the Eastern District of Virginia; Frances Townsend, a former Bush Homeland Security adviser; and former House Intelligence Committee chairman Mike Rogers.
Rogers picked up the endorsement Saturday of the FBI Agents Association, the union representing active and retired agents. Rogers, a Republican, is also a former FBI special agent.
In a statement, association president Thomas O’Connor said Rogers’ background “sets him apart.” The union also backed Rogers in 2013, the last time the FBI director position was open.
Cornyn is the second-ranking Senate Republican and a strong defender of Trump, a president who often places a premium on loyalty. The New York Times reported Thursday that Trump asked Comey to pledge his loyalty to the president and that Comey refused. The White House disputed that account.
If loyalty is a key factor, McCabe might be at a disadvantage. His allegiance appears to remain with Comey. In congressional testimony Thursday, McCabe directly contradicted a White House claim that “the rank and file of the FBI had lost confidence in their director.”