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Embattled FBI Director Christopher Wray will reportedly be gone by the time President-elect Donald Trump takes the oath of office in January.

A Washington Times article cited “sources inside the bureau” familiar with the FBI chief’s “thinking” to report that he plans to resign on or before Inauguration Day. This followed a blistering letter fired off by Sen. Charles Grassley giving Wray a vote of no-confidence.

“He’s going to be gone at the inauguration. On or before the inauguration,” a source told the outlet which claimed he “is calling it quits because he doesn’t want to get fired” by the incoming president.

Trump has named Kash Patel as his choice to lead the agency though in his first post-election network interview he did not call for Wray to step aside, nor did he indicate he would fire him upon being inaugurated.

With Wray’s potential exit, Deputy Director Paul Abbate would step up to fill in the role. Abbate reportedly planned to stay in the position until May or June to help facilitate the transition to a new FBI director. But those plans evidently took a turn this week as Sen. Grassley directed a no-nonsense letter to Wray, effectively telling him and Abbate to pack their bags.

“For the good of the country, it’s time for you and your deputy to move on to the next chapter in your lives. I’ve spent my career fighting for transparency, and I’ve always called out those in government who have fought against it,” Grassley wrote. “For the public record, I must do so once again now.”

“I therefore must express my vote of no confidence in your continued leadership of the FBI,” the Iowa Republican wrote in the 11-page letter.

“President-elect Trump has already announced his intention to nominate a candidate to replace you, and the Senate will carefully consider that choice. For my part, I’ve also seen enough, and hope your respective successors will learn from these failures,” Grassley, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, added.

Wray’s “failures​​” as FBI director were laid out by Grassley who said it “shattered my confidence in your leadership and the confidence and hope many others in Congress placed in you.”

He pointed to the FBI’s “unprecedented raid” of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home in Florida in 2022.

“In that raid, roughly 30 armed agents entered the home of a former president of the United States, with full authorization to use lethal force if needed to execute its warrant, and even searched the former First Lady’s clothing drawers,” Grassley wrote.

“Your and Deputy Director Abbate’s failure to take control of the FBI has hindered my work and others’ work throughout multiple Congresses on matters that needed timely information and has prevented the truth on some issues from ever reaching the American people. You’ve also shown a continuing double standard and failure to carry through on promises,” Grassley wrote in the scathing letter.

The FBI responded in a statement.

“The FBI has repeatedly demonstrated our commitment to responding to Congressional oversight and being transparent with the American people. Director Wray and Deputy Director Abbate have taken strong actions toward achieving accountability in the areas mentioned in the letter and remain committed to sharing information about the continuously evolving threat environment facing our nation and the extraordinary work of the FBI,” read the statement to the Washington Times.

Frieda Powers
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