Senate Judiciary Unanimously Advances Chris Wray Nomination to Full Senate

According to The Wall Street Journal, the Senate Judiciary Committee has unanimously approved the nomination of Atlanta attorney Chris Wray to be the next FBI director. Now he’ll face the full Senate within the next couple of weeks:

Christopher Wray, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next FBI director, cleared a key hurdle in his confirmation process on Thursday when the Senate Judiciary Committee voted in a show of unity to advance his nomination to the full Senate.

The unanimous vote by the 11 Republicans and nine Democrats on the panel paves the way for Mr. Wray to be confirmed and take office as the next leader of the Federal Bureau of Investigation before the Senate adjourns in mid-August for a brief summer recess. Mr. Wray, whom Mr. Trump nominated last month after firing James Comey, has drawn bipartisan praise on Capitol Hill and has faced no serious obstacles from his confirmation in the Senate.

The article goes on to note that even though Wray’s background and his nomination hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee earned wide bipartisan praise, he would take the helm of the FBI at a time of turmoil for the agency after the firing of the last director, James Comey. That came back into the spotlight yesterday as the New York Times released audio of an on-the-record interview with President Trump, in which he lambasted the FBI, the Justice Department, and the Special Counsel over the investigation into his Administration’s ties with Russia.

Wray, for his part, has promised to be an independent operator if he takes the helm of the agency:

During his appearance, he vowed independence from the president and a thorough investigation of questions about Russian interference or collusion in the democratic process. The Kremlin has denied meddling in the election and Mr. Trump has called inquiries into alleged collusion a “witch hunt.”

A hearing date before the full Senate has not yet been scheduled.