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FBI Director Chris Wray will resign at the end of the Biden administration, the bureau announced Wednesday, as it became clear he will be ousted by President-elect Donald Trump.
President Trump initially nominated Wray after firing the former FBI director, with three years remaining in Wray’s 10-year term, and had previously announced that he would nominate Kash Patel for the role. Patel continues to meet with senators to drum up support for a confirmation vote next year.
Sources said Wray is weighing whether to resign given President Trump’s desire to replace him and wants to facilitate an orderly transition of power. But some FBI officials feared that Mr. Trump’s resignation would set in motion a trend of replacing FBI directors they don’t like. This post spans multiple administrations and is supposed to be isolated from politics.
Wray took the helm of the bureau after President Trump fired Director James Comey after he placed his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election under scrutiny. Wray took over after Comey resigned in May 2017, at a time when the FBI was also investigating Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server.
Mr. Wray was seen by many lawmakers as a solid choice to steady the troubled ship as the next director, but ultimately faced a similar fate to his predecessor after also overseeing the FBI’s investigation into Mr. Trump. followed. Former president.
President Trump was particularly displeased with the FBI’s court-approved search of the Mar-a-Lago resort in August 2022 during an investigation into allegations of mishandling of classified documents.
Just this week, President Trump said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that he was “not excited” about Wray.
“He broke into my house. He broke into Mar-a-Lago,” Trump said.
Hear Kash Patel’s plans for the FBI
Wray made the announcement at a town hall at FBI headquarters in Washington, DC. According to people who attended the event, there was a standing ovation after his remarks, with some people crying.
“After several weeks of careful consideration, I have decided that it is right for the department to serve until the end of the current administration in January, and then resign. My goal is to fulfill our mission, which is to serve the American people every day. continue to focus on the essential work that we do,” Wray said, according to remarks prepared by the FBI. “In my view, this is the best way to avoid dragging the Secretariat deeper into the fray while reinforcing the values and principles that are so important to the way we work.”
“It goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway. This is not easy for me. I love this place, I love our mission, I love our people, but my focus is, and always has been, our responsibility to do what is right for us and for the FBI,” Wray added.
Trump said in a post on Truth Social that Wray’s resignation is “a great day for America because it brings an end to the weaponization of the organization known as the United States Department of Fraud.” I don’t know what happened to him. We will restore the rule of law for all Americans now. ”
“I look forward to a smooth transition. I will be ready to serve the American people from day one,” Patel said in a statement Wednesday.
Sen. Josh Hawley, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, called Wray’s resignation “a great development.”
“So he’s the worst FBI director in American history. He should step down,” said Hawley, R-Missouri, claiming that Wray “violated the Constitution” while in office. “By the way, this shouldn’t be a partisan thing. He’s a Republican, but he was just a bad director.”
Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts lamented President Trump’s move to remove Wray on CNN.
“Trump wants to politicize the FBI and take it back to the days of J. Edgar Hoover, where the FBI has its own really lawless policies and the FBI doesn’t actually uphold the law. “It is a tool of the state to persecute Americans, not everyone on our land,” said Moulton, a Democrat. “That’s why it’s so dangerous. And the calculation that Chris Wray made when he decided to resign is the calculation that hundreds of thousands of federal employees across Washington and across the country are making today.”
The two had a good relationship when President Trump first selected Wray to head the FBI in 2017. At the time, President Trump said Wray “will serve our country as a staunch guardian of the law and an example of integrity.”
Mr. Wray certainly sought to avoid confusion with the White House and other members of Congress, holding detailed briefings on Capitol Hill and reforming the agency in response to the failure of the Trump-Russia probe.
Still, relations quickly deteriorated, with President Trump’s disdain for Wray evident in public tweets and interviews, and the FBI director’s reluctance to release official documents related to the Russia investigation and allegations that Russia was trying to intervene. denounced Congressional testimony. There was no evidence of nationwide organized voter fraud in the 2020 election.
The rift has become even clearer since Trump left the White House in 2021 and began attacking both Wray and the agency for conducting politically motivated investigations.
After winning last month’s election, Trump promised to fire Wray and replace him with Patel, a Trump supporter and MAGA provocateur. Patel has vowed to root out what he called the “deep state” and refocus law enforcement. agency mission.
Wray’s FBI also conducted the largest investigation in its long history in response to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, making more than 1,500 arrests that day on suspicion of violating the law. Connected.
Mr. Wray had been considering in recent weeks whether to resign or wait to be fired, according to people briefed on the discussions. A key part of his consideration was saying goodbye to his employees and finding a way to manage his own departure, the people said.
The only problem was the timing of his announcement. And in recent days, Republicans have begun publicly paving the way to remove Mr. Wray, making it clear that not only Mr. Trump but other influential Republicans are also participating in his removal.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, the incoming Judiciary Committee chairman, sent a letter saying he has no confidence in the leadership of Wray and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate.
Inside the FBI, Mr. Grassley’s letter was seen as a sign that Republicans would attack the agency as a way to oust Mr. Wray, the people said.
Additionally, Rei’s resignation on January 20, 2025, which is a particularly vulnerable point for the government as a new administration takes office, ensures continuity by resigning and serving as deputy chief until a new one takes office. You can avoid the risk of
A person familiar with Wray’s thinking told CNN that leaving the agency voluntarily was a key element in his announcement Wednesday. Ray is said to be saddened by his premature departure, but is said to be determined.
Attorney General Merrick Garland praised Ray’s leadership and “integrity” during his career as a law enforcement officer.
“The Director of the FBI is responsible for protecting the FBI’s independence from improper influence in criminal investigations. That independence is central to upholding the rule of law and protecting the freedoms we cherish as Americans. “This is what will happen,” Garland said in a statement. “Coach Ray did his job with integrity and skill.”
Wray argued in a speech Wednesday that the FBI cannot change its “commitment to always do the right thing, the right way.”
“That’s the true strength of the FBI: the importance of our mission, the quality of our people, and our dedication to service over self-priority. It’s a solid foundation that has stood the test of time and is easy to move. You can’t,” Ray said. And it is because of you, the men and women of the FBI, that the Bureau will survive and continue to succeed well into the future. ”
This story has been updated with additional developments.
CNN’s Caitlan Collins, Dana Bash and Hannah Rabinowitz contributed to this report.
