“I will say to you the same thing that I said to all 56 of our field offices as soon as I read the memo, which is that the FBI is not in the business of investigating or policing speech at school board meetings or anywhere else for that matter,” said Wray. Republicans have complained that went too far in trying to police parents. Wray, meanwhile, acknowledged a difference over Garland’s 2021 memo instructing the FBI to coordinate with local law enforcement over threats against school boards. Tom Tiffany, R-Wis., said he will be allowing FISA to “sunset” if there are no reforms. Underscoring the extent to which surveillance errors during the Trump-Russia investigation continue to shadow the FBI, Rep. Members of both parties are frustrated with the program. A provision known as Section 702 is set to expire unless Congress agrees to renew it. One focus of Wednesday’s hearing was the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, that grants the FBI and other agencies broad powers to surveil the communications of foreigners outside the United States. Three panels opened a joint investigation into the Hunter Biden case, and one announced Wednesday that the two IRS whistleblowers who claimed Justice improperly interfered in the case will appear before Congress next week. The GOP has formed a special committee on “weaponization” of government, also led by Jordan, to investigate abusee. Republicans have held hearings with former FBI agents, Twitter executives and federal officials to make the case that the FBI has been corruptly using its powers against Trump and the right. Jordan has been laying the groundwork for Wray’s appearance since House Republicans took the majority in January. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., said she thought it was “actually sad that the majority is engaging conspiracy theories in an effort to discredit one of the premier law enforcement agencies in the United States.” He later noted the Energy Department’s intelligence arm reached a similar finding. “The idea that the FBI would somehow be involved in suppressing references to a lab leak theory is somewhat absurd when you consider the fact that the FBI was the only - the only - agency in the entire intelligence community to reach the assessment that it was more likely than not that was the explanation of the pandemic,” Wray said, pointing for emphasis. The director spelled out the bureau’s crime-fighting work breaking up drug cartels, taking some 60 suspected criminals off the streets each day and protecting Americans from “a staggering array of threats.” “The work the men and women of the FBI do to protect the American people goes way beyond one or two investigations that seem to capture all the headlines,” said Wray, a registered Republican whom Trump nominated to lead the FBI after firing James Comey in 2017. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol was “ludicrous.” Referring to his own background, he said the idea that he harbors bias against conservatives is “insane.” In testy exchanges with Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee, Wray rejected the GOP assertion that the bureau was favoring the Biden family and said the notion that the bureau was involved the Jan. The son of President Joe Biden recently reached an agreement to plead guilty to misdemeanor federal tax charges Republicans have derided that as a sweetheart deal. Wray refused to engage in specific questions about ongoing federal investigations, including those involving former President Trump and Hunter Biden. WASHINGTON (AP) - FBI Director Chris Wray defended the “real FBI” during a contentious congressional hearing Wednesday, rejecting a litany of grievances from angry Republicans who are harshly critical of the bureau, threatening to defund some operations and claiming the Justice Department is unfair to political conservatives, including Donald Trump.
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