Sen. John McCain praised James Comey, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, for his integrity in investigating politicians from both parties.
"His independence has never faltered. His integrity has never wavered. And I know in the pursuit of justice, it never will," McCain wrote in a Time magazine piece Thursday.
The magazine named Comey to its annual Time 100 Most Influential People list.
"Integrity is a word that doesn't get used a lot in Washington anymore. But that is the quality that has defined James Comey's service to our nation," the Arizona Republican wrote.
"We saw it when he was a federal prosecutor who took on terrorists, mobsters, and corporate fraudsters," McCain wrote, referring to Comey's career before his role as FBI director. "And we saw it during one of the most extraordinary elections in our history, in which he confronted circumstances unlike those faced by any of his predecessors."
During the presidential campaign, Comey was criticized for announcing in summer 2016 that the FBI would not charge then-Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton over security issues involving a private email server.
In November, weeks before the election, he said new information had been found about Clinton's emails that he would be investigating. He later announced nothing new had been found.
Clinton herself said she believes Comey was one of the reasons she lost the election.
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