US President Donald Trump said on Saturday he will move quickly to nominate a new FBI director, after he sparked a political firestorm by firing the man investigating possible collusion between Russia and the Trump presidential campaign.
Trump told reporters he might even be able to make his decision on who should succeed James Comey to lead the Federal Bureau of Investigation before he leaves on his first foreign trip on Friday.
March 20, 2017: Then FBI Director James Comey speaks during the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on Russian actions during the 2016 US presidential election campaign on in Washington, the US. /VCG Photo
"Even that is possible," Trump said, speaking on Air Force One before departing for Lynchburg, Virginia, where he delivered a commencement address.
"I think the process is going to go quickly," he said, adding that the candidates under consideration were mostly well known. "They've been vetted over their lifetime essentially. But very well known, highly respected, really talented people. And that's what we want for the FBI."
Critics have assailed Trump for abruptly dismissing Comey, who was leading the agency's investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 US election, and possible ties between Moscow and the Trump campaign.
Russia denies the claims and the White House says there was no collusion.
Andrew McCabe, acting director of the FBI after US President Trump fired James Comey, speaks during a Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on Worldwide Threats in Washington, the US on May 11, 2017. /VCG Photo
A White House official had said 11 people were under consideration – including acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, Republican Senator John Cornyn, New York Appeals Court Judge Michael Garcia and former Assistant Attorney General Alice Fisher – to replace Comey as FBI chief.
Two new names, however, emerged on Saturday: FBI special agent Adam Lee and US District Judge Henry Hudson. A source familiar with the process said Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his deputy, Rod Rosenstein, had interviewed Hudson, Lee and five others on Saturday.
The FBI Agents Association, which claims more than 13,000 active and retired agents as its members, on Saturday endorsed another candidate: former Representative Mike Rogers, who had also worked as an FBI agent.
US President Donald Trump waves before delivering a keynote address at Liberty University's commencement in Lynchburg, Virginia, the US on May 13, 2017. /VCG Photo
(Source: Reuters)
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