Trump vows to name new FBI chief ‘within days’

Eight candidates for FBI chief have been interviewed and a decision could be made this week.

Alice Fisher arrives to be interviewed at the US Department of Justice in Washington. Picture: AP

Eight candidates for FBI director have been interviewed as US President Donald Trump says a decision on a ­nominee to replace James Comey may be announced within days.

Mr Trump said yesterday he could make public his selection before he departs for the Middle East and Europe on Friday — his first overseas trip as US President

“I think the process is going to go quickly. Almost all of them are very well known,” Mr Trump said aboard the plane that took him to Lynchburg, Virginia, where he gave the commencement address at Liberty University.

“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.”

Mr Trump abruptly fired Mr Comey on Wednesday (AEST) and later described him as a “showboat” and “grandstander” who was not doing a good job.

The firing drew a wave of ­criticism in large part because the FBI has been investigating ­whether election meddling by Russia involved people in Mr Trump’s presidential campaign.

Changing rationales for the ­firing offered by White House aides added an element of chaos to the President’s action.

Mr Comey’s replacement requires Senate confirmation. The FBI director serves a 10-year term but can be replaced by the president.

So far 14 people — including legislators, lawyers and law enforcement officials — have emerged as candidates.

Eight met over the weekend with US Attorney-General Jeff Sessions and his deputy, Rod ­Rosenstein, throughout the day.

The first candidate to arrive for interviews was Alice Fisher, a high-ranking Justice Department official in the George W Bush ­administration.

Also interviewed were:
● Adam Lee, special agent in charge of the FBI’s office in Richmond, Virginia;
● Acting FBI director Andrew McCabe;
● Michael J. Garcia, a former ­prosecutor and associate judge on New York’s appeals court;
● Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the No 2 Senate leader and a ­former Texas attorney-general;
● US District Judge Henry E. Hudson, a Bush appointee who struck down the centrepiece of the Obama administration’s healthcare law in 2010;
● Frances Townsend, former Bush homeland security and counter-terrorism adviser;
● Former Representative Mike Rogers of Michigan, who was chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. A former FBI agent, Mr Rogers drew the backing of the FBI Agents Association, which said his diverse background makes him the best choice.

Ms Fisher and Ms Townsend were the only women on the list of candidates. The FBI has never had a female director.

Mr Sessions has faced questions over whether his involvement in Mr Comey’s firing violates his pledge to recuse himself from investigations into Russian interference in the election.

Some legislators have alleged the firing was an effort to stifle that FBI probe. Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said Mr Sessions and Mr Rosenstein were involved in the interviews because the FBI director reports to them as attorney-general and deputy attorney-general.

For a White House accustomed to bouts of chaos, Mr Trump’s handling of Mr Comey’s firing could have serious and long-lasting implications.

The decision appears to have emboldened the Senate intel­ligence committee investigating into Russia’s election interference and the President’s associates, with legislators announcing a subpoena for former national security adviser Michael Flynn.

Mr Comey’s allies also quickly made clear they would defend him against attacks from Mr Trump, including disputing the President’s assertion that Mr Comey told Mr Trump he was not personally under investigation.

Several people close to the President say his reliance on a small cadre of advisers as he mulled firing Mr Comey reflects his broader distrust of many of his own staffers. He leans heavily on daughter Ivanka Trump and son-in-law Jared Kushner, as well as Hope Hicks, his campaign spokeswoman, and Keith Schiller, his longtime bodyguard.

Trump confidants say chief strategist Steve Bannon has been marginalised on major decisions, including Mr Comey’s firing, after clashing with Mr Kushner.

And while Mr Trump praised chief of staff Reince Priebus after the House passed a healthcare bill last week, associates said the President had continued to raise occasional questions about Mr Priebus’ leadership in the West Wing.

Still, Mr Priebus was among the tight circle of staffers Mr Trump consulted about Mr Comey’s firing.

AP