FBI Director Christopher Wray on Wednesday announced he would resign from the bureau at the end of the Biden administration next month, with more than two years remaining on his term in office.
“My goal is to keep the focus on our mission — the indispensable work you’re doing on behalf of the American people every day,” he told employees at an FBI town hall, according to an excerpt the FBI shared with reporters. “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.”
President-elect Donald Trump has frequently expressed his displeasure with federal law enforcement, and with Wray in particular, and had already said he would nominate Kash Patel, a close ally and former national security aide, to replace Wray.
Trump made the FBI a frequent target during his first term in the White House. He nominated Wray to head the FBI, which Wray has led since 2017. But Trump’s relationship with Wray grew tense as FBI agents helped investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election, and then worked with a special counsel to prosecute Trump for hoarding classified documents and attempting to cling to power in 2020.
It’s the second time an FBI leader has left in connection to the Trump administration before the director’s 10-year-term had expired. In 2017, Trump’s Justice Department leaders dismissed James Comey and Trump replaced him with Wray, a longtime conservative and member of the Federalist Society.
After Trump’s election to a second term in the White House, Wray had initially signaled he intended to remain on the job. “The director is continuing to oversee the day to day operations of the FBI and is actively planning with his team to lead the FBI into next year and beyond,” an FBI official said in November after the election.
The FBI employs more than 35,000 people who work to investigate federal crimes, prevent terrorist attacks and analyze intelligence materials. Its leader is the only political appointee at the FBI. Congress tried to insulate the agency from political winds by giving the FBI director 10 years in office, to extend beyond the tenure of any one president.
But some of Trump’s conservative advisers have suggested trying to overhaul the FBI to make its director accountable to more junior officials inside the Justice Department with more political control.
The FBI’s headquarters building continues to bear the name of J. Edgar Hoover, its longest-serving leader, whose tenure is now remembered for overreach and personal vendettas.
