FBI Director Christopher Wray announced his intention to resign from the bureau in an employee town hall on Wednesday.
According to NBC News, the Donald Trump appointee said he would step down at the end of President Joe Biden's administration, leaving behind a role he's held since 2017. Trump nominated loyalist Kash Patel to lead the FBI in November, signaling his intention to show Wray the door.
Wray said his resignation would keep the FBI out of a drawn-out political fight.
"After weeks of careful thought, 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 said. "My goal is to keep the focus on our mission... 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."
Though Wray was Trump's choice to replace former FBI Director James Comey, the president-elect has soured on the director following his investigations into Trump. In an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press" that aired Sunday, Trump accused Wray of "invading" his Florida resort Mar-a-Lago while looking into Trump's handling of classified documents.
“I can’t say I’m thrilled with him. He invaded my home. I’m suing the country over it. He invaded Mar-a-Lago," he said. "I’m very unhappy with the things he’s done."
Patel's nomination stoked fears of a second Trump term focused on retribution and revenge. Patel has threatened to prosecute people who debunked Trump's false claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged in favor of Democrats.
"We’re going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections," Patel told Steve Bannon in 2023. "We’re going to come after you, whether it’s criminally or civilly. We’ll figure that out."
During his meeting with employees on Wednesday, Wray expressed regret that his term as head of the FBI had to end this way.
"It should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway — this is not easy for me," he shared. "I love this place, I love our mission, and I love our people — but my focus is, and always has been, on us and doing what’s right for the FBI."
Trump celebrated the news of Wray's resignation in a post to Truth Social.
"The resignation of Christopher Wray is a great day for America as it will end the Weaponization of what has become known as the United States Department of Injustice. I just don’t know what happened to him," he wrote. "I look forward to Kash Patel’s confirmation, so that the process of Making the FBI Great Again can begin.
