WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� FBI Director Christopher Wray said Wednesday he plans to resign at the end of President Joe Biden's term in January, an announcement that came a week and a half after President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate loyalist Kash Patel for the job.
At a town hall meeting with the bureau workforce, Wray said he would be stepping down 鈥渁fter weeks of careful thought.鈥�
Wray's intended resignation is not unexpected considering that Trump had picked Patel for the role in his new administration.
Wray had previously been named by Trump and began the 10-year term 鈥� a length meant to insulate the agency from the political influence of changing administrations 鈥� in 2017, after Trump fired then-FBI Director James Comey.
Trump had telegraphed his anger with Wray on multiple occasions, including after Wray鈥檚 congressional testimony in September. But the soft-spoken director rarely seemed to go out of his way to publicly confront the White House.
Eric Tucker, The Associated Press
