Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., questioned FBI Director Christopher Wray in a House Judiciary hearing Wednesday focused on the investigation into the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump on July 13 at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
When Jayapal asked Wray to explain the importance of the FBI maintaining independence from the president, Wray responded that the FBI needs political independence so that it can objectively follow facts to uphold the Constitution and protect American democracy.
“I think the FBI is and needs to stay independent, and that means protecting the American people without fear or favor, upholding the Constitution and the rule of law, and it means following the facts wherever they lead, no matter who likes it,” Wray said.
“Our independence and objectivity can’t only be respected when you like the outcome. That’s the very essence of objectivity. Sometimes you’re going to like the result, sometimes you’re not gonna like the result, that applies to everyone, including us,” Wray added. “Any number of times we’re disappointed and frustrated by the results of our investigations, but the alternative is an erosion of the rule of law where the only thing that distinguishes one investigation for another is power, and that’s what you see in some of authoritarian countries around the world.”
Jayapal had raised the question of political independence in relation to a conservative agenda known as Project 2025, with contributions by allies and potential advisers of former President Donald Trump, that seeks to make the director of the FBI follow the directives of the president of the United States.
Earlier this week, the House Oversight Committee grilled Kimberly Cheatle, director of the U.S. Secret Service at the time of the deadly shooting. Members on both sides of the aisle called for her resignation and she announced Tuesday she was stepping down. Cheatle repeatedly referred lawmakers seeking details to the investigation being carried out by the FBI.
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