FBI Director Christoper Wray, during a strong grilling by members of the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday in connection with its investigation into the weaponization of the nation's top law enforcement agency, slammed accusations that bureau agents were involved in the Jan. 6, 2021 violence at the nation's Capitol as "ludicrous."
Wray's response came during questioning by Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., who asked him if Ray Epps, who has been alleged to be a government agent who stoked the storming of the Capitol, was working for the FBI.
"I will say, this notion that somehow the violence at the Capitol on January 6 was part of some operation orchestrated by FBI sources and agents is ludicrous and is a disservice to our brave, hardworking, dedicated men and women," Wray said while denying the reports.
Wray further insisted that the FBI did not have any knowledge in advance of the protests or about the storming of the Capitol.
The director maintained the FBI did not have any advance knowledge of the assault that saw hundreds of former President Donald Trump's supporters storm the federal legislature as lawmakers prepared to take a constitutionally-mandated step ahead of President Joe Biden's inauguration.
However, when Rep. Darrell Issa asked Wray if the FBI had confidential human sources, or informants, at the Capitol that day, he would not confirm if any were present.
"I really need to be careful here talking about where we have or have not used confidential human sources," Wray told the California Republican.
Wray also testified that domestic extremism was on the rise nationwide for "quite some time" before the incidents of Jan. 6, as the FBI had observed a 40% increase in the number of investigations before the Capitol protests.
These were incidents motivated not only by politics, but by abortion views, the environment, race, and a "wide spectrum" of actions, he said.
Wray, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump and is a registered Republican, also defended himself and the agency against other accusations made by House Republicans, including on the FBI's role in the search of Trump's Mar-a-Lago home last March, which he said was prompted through a court order and was lawful.
He also pushed back when Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga., asked him what would happen if Republicans follow through with threats to defund the FBI.
"It would hurt the American people, neighborhoods, and communities all across this country. The people we are protecting from cartels, violent criminals, gang members, predators, foreign and domestic terrorists, cyberattacks," said Wray. "The people it would help would be those same violent gangs and cartels, foreign terrorists, Chinese spies, hackers, and so forth."
Wray further rejected arguments that the FBI is employed in the use of a "two-tier justice system," after Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyo., told him that 'the American people fully understand that there is a two-tier justice system that has been weaponized to persecute people based on their political beliefs, and that you have personally worked to weaponize the FBI against conservatives."
"I would disagree with your characterization of the FBI and certainly your description of my own approach," Wray responded. "The idea that I'm biased against conservatives seems somewhat insane to me, given my own personal background.”
Agents, he added, can keep trust in the bureau by doing the "right thing in the right way," which means "following the facts wherever they lead, no matter who likes it."
Meanwhile, Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, while opening the hearing, called on Democrats to oppose reauthorizing Section 702, a warrantless surveillance program, while questioning money the FBI wants for a new headquarters.
Rep. Jerrold Nadler, the committee's top Democrat, though, decried the hearing as "performance art," and said it was called to "protect Donald Trump from the consequences of his actions."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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