Director defends FBI after Trump’s jabs
‘There is no finer institution,’ Wray says
WASHINGTON – FBI Director Christopher Wray offered a stirring defense of the agency on Thursday in the wake of rebukes from President Trump, who recently said the bureau’s reputation was “in tatters” and called its impartiality into question.
“It is the honor of my life to lead the FBI,” Wray told the House Judiciary Committee, the first time he has addressed Trump’s criticism in public. “There is no finer institution than the FBI and no finer people who work there.”
While he not mention Trump by name, Wray insisted that “the FBI I see are tens of thousands of agents who working their tails off. The FBI I see are tens of thousands of men and woman who are hard-charging people of integrity.”
When asked directly how the president’s criticism has affected FBI agents and their work, Wray said: “The agents, analysts and staff of the FBI are big boys and girls. We understand we will take criticism from all corners.” However, he added, “my experience is that our reputation is quite good.”
Wray’s testimony came minutes after the Republican chairman of the panel launched into a critique of the FBI. Virginia Rep. Bob Goodlatte suggested communications that led to the removal of a top counterintelligence official from the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election amounted to “insider bias” against Trump.
“The FBI’s reputation has been called into question,” Goodlatte said at an oversight hearing. “You, Director Wray, have a unique opportunity to repair the damage.”
His comments echoed Trump’s tweets that the FBI’s reputation “is in Tatters - worst in History!”
Justice Department officials acknowledged last week that FBI agent Peter Strzok, a top counter-intelligence official, was abruptly reassigned earlier this year from special counsel Robert Mueller team investigating Russia’s interference in the 2016 election. Strzok, who also helped run the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while she was secretary of State, was moved to the bureau’s human resources office.
His transfer came after Justice’s inspector general found Strzok and another FBI official previously assigned to Mueller’s team, Lisa Page, had exchanged communications critical of Trump.
Trump and his allies have jumped on the news in an attempt to discredit special counsel Mueller’s investigation.
Trump’s weekend outrage at the FBI followed new charges filed by Mueller’s team against Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, for lying to FBI agents about his contacts with Russia Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.
Flynn, who has pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with Mueller’s inquiry, was the fourth member of Trump’s campaign team to be charged so far in the investigation.
Though several members pressed for more details about Strzok, Wray said he was awaiting the outcome of the inspector general’s inquiry before he would address it publicly.
On Thursday, House Republicans appeared to take up where Trump’s criticism left off. Texas Reps. Louie Gohmert and Ted Poe, Idaho Rep. Raul Labrador and South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy all expressed concerns that the bureau’s operations had been tainted by politics.
Wray said he would not have accepted Trump’s nomination without a commitment to the “independence and impartiality” of the agency.