Democrats on Capitol Hill say they're disappointed that FBI Director Christopher Wray decided to resign instead of forcing President-elect Donald Trump to oust him when he returns to the White House next month.
"I think he should have forced Trump to fire him because by stepping down he sort of took the onus off Trump for breaking with the tradition and the policy of having FBI directors serve 10-year terms," Rep. Glenn Ivey, D-Md., a former prosecutor and House Judiciary member, told The Hill.
"Now there's this precedent now for FBI directors stepping down when a new president comes in," Ivey added. "And that's not how this should work."
Trump nominated Wray to lead the FBI in 2017 after firing former Director James Comey. Barring termination or resignation, Wray's tenure was set to end in 2027.
In announcing Kash Patel as his pick to lead the agency, the president-elect telegraphed his plans to give Wray the boot upon taking office.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., who is set to take over as the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, told The Hill he would have preferred "to have continuity and viability in that office, before someone like Kash Patel gets his hands on it." Raskin also expressed alarm at a children's book that Patel wrote.
"It's about King Donald," he said. "The hero is a guy named Kash who valiantly rises to the defense of King Donald who's being besieged by Hillary Queenton. This is the guy who's going to be the Director of the FBI if Donald Trump has his way."
Patel has also written a book called "Government Gangsters," which includes an appendix that lists 60 people he identifies as "Members of the Executive Branch Deep State." Wray is included in this group, along with other current and former Justice Department officials.
Additionally, Patel reportedly said the group "must be held accountable and exposed in 2024" in fundraising emails from his foundation.
On Thursday morning, Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., said Wray squandered an opportunity "to save the bureau … by resigning now."
"I understand why a nonpartisan FBI director who believes in the rule of law, who believes in the institution, would not want to be a distraction for the agency and the work that they do," Goldman told The Hill. "But we're in different times now, and I wish he had stuck it out to make it difficult for Donald Trump to fire his second FBI director when they have a 10-year term for a reason.
"And because of what Donald Trump is threatening to do with the FBI, what his nominee, Kash Patel, would do, it's really important that everybody who has a position of significance or a position in the federal government continues to do their job to uphold the rule of law, because that's under attack right now, and so yes, I wish he had stayed as long as he possibly could," he added.