WASHINGTON — FBI Director Chris Wray said Wednesday that GOP accusations that he used his power to oppress conservatives were “mad.”
After Republicans complained for several hours in a House Judiciary Committee hearing that the FBI had been “gunned down” against Republicans, Wray offered a reality check.
“The idea that I’m biased against conservatives seems kind of crazy to me, given my personal background,” he said in response to a question from Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wyo.) .
Wray, a registered Republican, was nominated to his post by former President Donald Trump, who said at the time of his selection that Wray had “impeccable credentials,” including a stint as assistant deputy attorney general in the George W. Bush administration.
For much of the hearing, Republicans suggested that the FBI under Wray sought to persecute Trump and his supporters.
Representatives Darrell Issa (R-California) and Andy Biggs (R-Arizona) asked Wray how many FBI agents were in the crowd of Trump supporters who stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, as part of Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 election results.
More than a thousand rioters were arrested for their actions that day, and nearly 200 made public statements saying they went to the Capitol at Trump’s request — contrary to the conspiracy theory that they were actually manipulated by undercover FBI agents to ransack the building.
“I don’t believe there were any undercover agents on the scene,” Wray noted, declining to say whether the FBI had any confidential human sources in the crowd.
Court cases have revealed that there was confidential informants linked to the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, groups that were integral to the attack, but defense attorneys have not claimed that informants orchestrated the riot. A testified that he went to the Capitol not as an informant, but strictly as a proud boy.
Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) complained that the FBI stayed away while former intelligence officials disparaged stories from the abandoned laptop of Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, as “misinformation” even though the FBI had confirmed the laptop was genuine.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) asked about a recently discovered text message allegedly from Hunter Biden to a Chinese associate, in which the younger Biden appeared to invoke his father’s name in a demand for payment.
“Are you protecting the Bidens? Gaetz asked.
“Absolutely not,” Wray said. “The FBI has no interest in protecting anyone politically.”
For the most part, however, Republicans on the Judiciary Committee did not ask Wray about their latest high-profile allegations about the Bidens, including that Hunter Biden illegally received millions in payments from sources linked to the Chinese Communist Party.
On Monday, the Biden bribe story suffered an apparent setback after the Justice Department unveiled an indictment against Gal Luft, a dual US-Israeli citizen who claimed knowledge of payments to the Bidens who would compromise the president.. Luft had been hailed by Republicans as a credible whistleblower, but turns out to be a fugitive hiding from extradition to the United States to face drug trafficking charges. weapons and failure to register as a foreign agent.
Elsewhere, Republicans issued cautious notes on Biden’s allegations. Sen. Lindsey Graham (RS.C.), the senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, acknowledged Wednesday that Luft’s indictment could undermine parts of the House GOP case against the Bidens.
“If his activities as an unregistered foreign agent damage his credibility, if accurate, yes,” Graham told HuffPost.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), meanwhile, said he has yet to see any evidence of a link between Hunter Biden’s “unsavory” business dealings with Joe Biden, which some House Republicans have said. alleged.
“If there is a connection between Hunter Biden’s unsavory activity and the president, it would be very important to find out,” Romney said. “I haven’t seen any evidence at this stage, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any. But if it’s there, then let’s see it. But I haven’t heard any allegations yet. suggesting such a link.
“Hunter did a lot of really stupid stuff and it’s embarrassing how he took advantage of his family name to get rich,” Romney added. “But children’s sins should not be blamed on parents unless we can show that was the case, and I don’t know if that has been shown yet.”