Former Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday he would fire FBI Director Christopher Wray on “day one” if elected president, saying that Americans have “lost confidence” in the Justice Department.
The FBI has faced accusations that the agency has become politicized in cases involving pro-life advocates and parents protesting at school board meetings and was involved in censorship following reports based on documents released to journalist Matt Taibbi by Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter.
“Would you fire Christopher Wray?” Fox Business host Larry Kudlow, a former Trump administration official, asked Pence.
“Day one. Day one,” Pence responded. “The American people have lost confidence in the Department of Justice. They just have. I hear it everywhere that I go.”
Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida promised to fire Wray on the first day in office in a May 24 interview on Fox News, while former Republican Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey declared his intention to keep the FBI director on if Wray wanted to stay in a CNN Town Hall Monday.
Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy called for shutting down the FBI following the release of the Durham report on the origins of the investigation into allegations that Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign colluded with Russia.
“We’re a nation of laws and not of men, as the old ancient phrase says. We have to restore confidence,” Pence added.