FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies during a House Judiciary Committee about oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Capitol Hill July 12, 2023, in Washington, DC. Conservative House Republicans claim that the FBI and other federal law enforcement agencies have been “weaponized” against conservatives, including former U.S. President Donald Trump and his allies. Wray defended the FBI workforce, emphasizing that the agency protects Americans every day “from a staggering array of threats.”
On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray testified before the House Judiciary Committee for hours, attempting to defend the bureau after recent accusations.
Wray’s presence was part of a routine inspection. The hearing began at 10 a.m. and ended just after 3:45 p.m.
The hearing was announced by the Judiciary Committee, which stated that members “will be demanding answers from FBI Director Wray on the abuse of power in federal agencies.”
Wray consistently defended the FBI for many hours, fielding questions on a variety of claims and worries about the agency’s monitoring, all while expressing thanks for the bureau’s efforts.
He denied that the bureau was involved in the U.S. Capitol breach on January 6th, sparred with two Republican lawmakers about allegations of corruption regarding Joe Biden and his family, and tried to refute an FBI memo warning about “radical-traditionalist Catholic ideology.”
When he was pressed at the end of the hearing to answer GOP accusations regarding FBI weaponization, the agency’s targeting of American citizens and specifically conservatives, Wray only provided a glimpse of what he termed as the “real FBI” by recalling more positive efforts by agents, suspiciously changing the subject altogether.
“The FBI that I see every day is working their tail off to protect the American people from a really staggering array of threats. They are an inspiring, incredibly dedicated group of people,” he said.
“The FBI I see is best captured by the Chicago agent who had his arm shot up by an AR-15 chasing a fugitive and retrained himself to shoot left-handed and then requalified for SWAT left-handed,” Wray continued.
He also mentioned another agent in Portland, Oregon, who assisted in the rescue of a mentally ill woman who attempted to fight him off by biting him.
“That’s the FBI that I see. I could give you countless examples. That is the real FBI,” Wray said.
