Trump announced Wednesday morning on Twitter his selection of Wray to replace James Comey, who was sacked by the president last month.
Wray, 50, a Washington and Atlanta-based defense lawyer who specializes in white-collar crime, is viewed by some as a relatively safe choice for Trump, who is deeply embroiled in controversy surrounding his recent firing of Comey during an Federal Bureau of Investigation probe of possible collusion between Trump campaign aides and the Russians during the 2016 presidential campaign.
Wednesday, Trump announced through his Twitter account that he'd be nominating Christopher Wray as Comey's replacement.
"I think Trump's firing of James Comey was a travesty", Goldsmith wrote on the Lawfare blog.
Since leaving the DOJ, Wray's career with King & Spalding has been focused on representing large companies and institutions in investigations involving U.S. Attorney's Offices across the country.
"The acting Attorney General, Sally Yates, has betrayed the Department of Justice by refusing to enforce a legal order created to protect the citizens of the United States", White House press secretary Sean Spicer said at the time.
Wray said in the statement that he was honored to be nominated.
That's why this is a smart pick for Trump.
Reaction to Wray was slow on Capitol Hill as lawmakers weren't given advance notice and few in Congress know him. The New York Times reported last week that Wray was in the running for the job, one of two candidates Trump was considering.
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Trump announced his selection of Wray in a surprise, early-morning Twitter message.
Trump's announcement comes before former FBI Director James Comey is set to testify before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on Thursday.
Five hours after Trump's announcement, Grassley issued a statement saying, "I'm grateful for the President's thorough consultation throughout this process". He adds that Wray would work 20 hours to complete four hours of work. Mark Warner, D-Va., the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee on MSNBC.
The announcement caps off several tumultuous weeks for the White House since Trump suddenly fired Comey, prompting allegations that Trump was trying to impede the FBI's investigation into ties between his campaign associates and Russian Federation and eventually leading Rosenstein to appoint Mueller as special counsel to oversee that investigation. Senators of both parties had urged Trump to choose a law-enforcement professional rather than a politician when the president was considering choices such as Senator John Cornyn and former Senator Joe Lieberman.
Christie and Wray met when Christie was the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey in the Bush administration.
Ken Wainstein, former chief of the Justice Department's National Security Division, described Wray as "an exceptionally strong choice".
Rep. Pete King of NY said, "I assume it's a good choice". While Warner said he didn't know Wrap personally, he noted the former Justice official has a good reputation.
Wray represented Christie in a scandal that resulted in two of the governor's aides being convicted.
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