Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Christopher Wray refused to tell House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) at a hearing Tuesday whether the FBI is engaged in counterintelligence investigations into President Joe Biden or former President Donald Trump.
During the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence’s Annual Threat Assessment hearing, Stefanik pressed Wray on the matter. She first emphasized that former FBI Director James Comey “testified that he did not follow the proper protocol regarding the notification of Congress of the opening of the Crossfire Hurricane” – the counterintelligence investigation into Trump in 2016.
The third-ranking House Republican also noted under the Intelligence Authorization Act, the FBI is directed to inform “Congressional leadership of any counter-intel investigation into a federal candidate for office” before asking about potential counterintelligence investigations into Trump or Biden.
After a long pause, Wray attempted to refer Stefanik to Special Counsel Robert Hur, but Stefanik demanded an answer, citing the IAA.
“There is no investigation that I could confirm here, no,” he said, his language seeming to raise alarm bells for Stefanik, who followed up with a grin:
Stefanik: Is there a counterintelligence investigation?
Wray: Again, I’m not confirming any investigation into either candidate.
Stefanik: Are you aware that you’re required by the IAA to notify Congress of any counterintelligence investigation?
Wray: And we will comply with the law.
Stefanik: Have you already complied with the law? Has there been a notification?
Wray: I believe we have been in compliance with the law.
Stefanik: You believe you have been or has there been a notification to Congress of any counterintelligence investigation of a federal candidate?
Wray: I believe we have complied with the law.
The director went on to say he is “not in the business of confirming, especially not at open hearing assessments or anything like that when it comes to counterintelligence matters” when asked if a “counter-intel assessment” had been conducted on either of the presumptive nominees or one of their immediate family members.
Stefanik asked Wray if he would confirm whether there was a counterintelligence investigation into Trump or Biden in a “classified hearing later today,” prompting the response, “We will comply with the law.”
During the nearly seven-minute-long exchange, Stefanik also grilled Wray on Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report of the Biden classified documents investigation, the Mar-a-Lago raid, and whether federal campaigns with accounts on TikTok are a national security risk.