Interest builds over Trump’s FBI pick

Speculation is building over who President Trump might select to lead the FBI, with President Trump pledging Saturday to quickly replace fired FBI Director James Comey.

Various outside figures had already begun to voice their preferences for the next FBI chief as interviews for the position started Saturday.

Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, former Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) are three of eight candidates who interviewed for the role on Saturday, a source confirmed to The Hill. 

Judge Michael J. Garcia of the New York Court of Appeals; Alice Fisher, a former assistant attorney general; Judge Henry Hudson of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Adam Lee, the special agent running the FBI’s office in Richmond, Va.; and former Homeland Security Advisor to George W. Bush Fran Townsend also had interviews on Saturday, the source said.

Sources told Politico that Cornyn is seriously weighing accepting the post should Trump choose him.

{mosads}But a battle is already brewing over what type of director Trump may choose to helm the FBI, a position which requires Senate confirmation. While some have praised news that current and former members of Congress are under review for the role, others are not so keen on a politician leading the bureau.

“We don’t need politicians running FBI right now; bad enough that we have Sessions as AG. No mas!!” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) wrote on Twitter Saturday evening.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), however, said he felt “encouraged” by a report that Cornyn and Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) were being considered for the role.

“Very encouraged that @POTUS is considering @TGowdySC & @JohnCornyn to lead @FBI either would be an excellent choice,” Rubio said Saturday. 

Former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara took issue with Rubio’s endorsement of Gowdy and Cornyn.

“A radical thought — to preserve independence, remove politics/partisanship at FBI maybe a loyal partisan politician shouldn’t be in charge,” Bharara, who was fired by Trump after refusing to resign, wrote on Twitter.

The New York Times’s FBI reporter shared a similar sentiment, saying Saturday that agents would see the bureau as being politicized if a lawmaker were appointed chief. 

If @realDonaldTrump names politician to run FBI, the agents will not be happy. It will be seen as sign that the FBI is being politicized

— Adam Goldman (@adamgoldmanNYT) May 13, 2017

Trump is playing with fire if @JohnCornyn gets the job. @FBI agents with seethe at the choice.

— Adam Goldman (@adamgoldmanNYT) May 13, 2017

Other members of law enforcement have rallied behind Rogers, who previously chaired the House Intelligence Committee while serving in Congress, but also has FBI experience. A group of current and former FBI officials endorsed Rogers on Saturday, noting his career as an FBI Special Agent and his tenure in Congress.

“Mike Rogers’ background as a Special Agent, veteran of the armed forces and former member of Congress sets him apart as someone capable of confronting the wide array of challenges facing our help ensure that the Bureau remains the world’s premiere law enforcement agency,” Thomas F. O’Connor, president of the FBI Agents Association, said in a statement.

“Rogers’ unique and diverse experience will allow him to effectively lead the men and women of the Bureau as we work to protect our country from criminal and terrorist threats,” O’Connor said.

After setting off shockwaves in Washington with Comey’s dismissal earlier this week, Trump said the process of replacing Comey should move quickly.

“I think the process is going to go quickly,” Trump said Saturday aboard Air Force One. “Almost all of them are very 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.”

Trump’s decision to fire Comey earlier this week caused concern among both Republican and Democratic lawmakers, as the former FBI head had been leading the bureau’s investigation into Russia’s meddling in the United States presidential election and any potential ties between Trump campaign staff members and Russia.