Wray pledges review, possible discipline over FBI staffers’ handling of Clinton investigation
WASHINGTON —FBI Director Christopher Wray pledged Thursday to hold accountable and take disciplinary action against any FBI agents or other officials for misconduct detailed in a Justice Department report that faulted predecessor James Comey and others for their handling of the investigation of Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential election.
“We’re going to adhere to the appropriate disciplinary process, and once that process is complete, we won’t hesitate to hold people responsible for their actions,” Wray told reporters at an evening news conference here.
He refused to identify any FBI staff who might be reviewed.
“I take this report very seriously, and we accept its findings and recommendations,” Wray said. “There are some sobering lessons in [the report], and we’re going to learn those lessons and we’re going to act on those lessons, and that’s the way the FBI’s always handled these things in the past and that’s what made the FBI stronger over the last 110 years.”
But the FBI chief stressed the Justice Department’s Inspector General’s report “did not find any evidence of political bias or improper considerations actually impacting the investigation under review.”
“The report does identify errors of judgment, violations of or even disregard for policy, and decisions that at the very least —with the benefit of hindsight —were not the best choices,” Wray said.
He said the report “makes clear that we’ve got some work to do.”
“But,” Wray added, “let’s also be clear on the scope of this report. It’s focused on a specific set of events back in 2016 and a small number of FBI employees connected with those events. Nothing, nothing in this report impugns the integrity of our workforce as a whole or the FBI as an institution.”
This story is republished with permission from Talk Media News.
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