The decision of FBI Director Christopher Wray to resign from his position two years before his 10-year term ended didn’t exactly get him hosannas on social media.
“I’ve decided the right thing for the bureau is for me to serve until the end of the current administration in January and then step down,” Wray told FBI staffers. “In my view, this is the best way to avoid dragging the bureau deeper into the fray while reinforcing the values and principles that are so important to how we do our work.”
The resignation opens the door for President-elect Donald Trump’s preferred nominee, Kash Patel, without having to fire Wray.
Trump appointed Wray to the FBI Director position in 2017 after he fired James Comey, but hasn’t been too happy with him since the FBI raided Mar-a-Lago in August 2022 and uncovered troves of classified documents that led to federal criminal charges against Trump.
Although Wray probably wants his departure to be seen as a statesman-like decision, it wasn’t seen that way on social media.
Instead, he was criticized for engaging in “anticipatory obedience” by former Obama administration ethics czar Norm Eisen, who thought Wray had a duty to the country to “constantly push back” and make Trump fire him.
Other people also called out Wray for succumbing to the pressure.
Democracy In The Balance
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Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) spoke out against Wray’s resignation Wednesday on MSNBC. You can see the segment below.