FBI Director Wray was 'standoffish' to the Judiciary Committee: Rep. Mike Johnson
Rep. Mike Johnson called on FBI Director Chris Wray to correct his testimony during an appearance on 'Sunday Night in America.'
Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., called on FBI Director Christopher Wray to correct his congressional testimony on Sunday, alleging he made a number of "demonstrably untrue" statements during his hearing before the House Judiciary Committee last week.
"Chairman Jim Jordan and I are preparing a letter that we'll issue probably Monday or Tuesday to ask the director to correct his testimony," Johnson told "Sunday Night in America." We are going to point out the contradictions and what he said under oath and we'll start with that."
"I think some of the answers he provided to us in the hearing were demonstrably untrue," Johnson later added. "It's just a problem that scandal upon scandal continues to stack up."
FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies during a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
During a contentious House committee hearing last Wednesday, Republican lawmakers grilled the FBI director on the politicization of his agency, a recent federal court ruling detailing the bureau’s alleged suppression of conservative free speech related to the Hunter Biden laptop story, COVID-19 origins and other subjects discussed by Americans on social media.
In a heated line of questioning, Johnson charged that he found it "stunning" that Wray made no mention in his opening statement -- nor in a lengthy report he prepared on July 12 -- of the July 4 injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty in Louisiana ordering the White House, Justice Department, the FBI and other Biden administration agencies to limit communication with social media companies regarding efforts to curb First Amendment-protected free speech.
Wray deflected the question, insisting that the bureau is not focussed on "disinformation" and that he is "absolutely not" protecting the Biden family amid allegations the Hunter Biden probe was influenced by politics.
Wray also refused to answer questions from House Judiciary Committee lawmakers on whether President Biden is under federal investigation for an alleged criminal bribery scheme and told the committee about the good work of the FBI, while denying any alleged politicization within the bureau. The FBI director also blasted claims he is biased against conservatives as "somewhat insane."
Rep. Mike Johnson speaks during a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill on July 14, 2022. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
"He was defiant, he was evasive and really, he was standoffish to the Judiciary Committee and of course, we have the important responsibility of oversight of his agency," Johnson told Fox News host Trey Gowdy Sunday.
FBI DIRECTOR WRAY SAYS IDEA HE IS TARGETING CONSERVATIVES IS ‘SOMEWHAT INSANE’
Johnson said Wray's refusal to directly address questions pertaining to his agency's alleged suppression of conservative free speech undermines public trust in U.S. institutions like the FBI.
"The latest polling said that only 37 percent Americans have any faith in the FBI," the lawmaker continued. "This is a threat to our entire system of justice, the people have to believe that they're fair and impartial and we do have equal justice under the law, but right now under this leadership, we don’t."
The FBI published a press release on Wednesday as Wray was testifying outlining his position on a wide range of issues including social media censorship.
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"The FBI is not in the business of being the ‘truth police’ or telling any social media company to censor an account, and we don’t moderate content," the press release explained.
"The FBI is, as a law enforcement and intelligence agency, responsible for working with companies, in a fully lawful way, to protect our communities from child predators and terrorists, as well as hostile foreign countries like China, Russia, and Iran, looking to exploit social media platforms to commit crimes and threaten national security."
Fox News' Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.