President Donald Trump didn’t rule out the possibility of replacing FBI Director Christopher Wray on Friday, the day after Trump criticized Wray’s description of antifa.
Wray referred to antifa as “a movement or an ideology” rather than a “group” in Congressional testimony on Thursday, a description with which Trump disagreed. Asked by reporters whether he was considering a replacement, Trump said he is “looking at a lot of different” things, according to reporters at the White House.
Asked if he’s considering replacing @FBI director Chris Wray, TRUMP before leaving WH tells reporters he’s “looking at a lot of different” things.
He says he disagreed with Wray, who told lawmakers yday antifa is “not a group or an organization. It’s a movement or an ideology.”
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) September 18, 2020
Wray has testified to Congress that white supremacist groups presented a greater domestic terror threat than antifa, an idea which stands in stark contrast to Trump’s messaging in recent months. (RELATED: Trump On George Floyd Riots: ‘I Will Not Allow Angry Mobs To Dominate’)
Trump announced in May that his administration planned to officially designate antifa a terrorist organization, but the designation has not yet been made.
There is some precedent for declaring domestic terrorist organizations. San Francisco declared the National Rifle Association a domestic terror organization in 2019, but the announcement had no legal ramifications beyond expressing the opinion of the city. It is unclear what legal implications a federal declaration against antifa would have.
Trump’s dust-up with Wray comes the same week he contradicted Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield’s testimony to Congress.
Redfield had said a coronavirus vaccine won’t be widely available until summer 2021, months later than Trump promised on Wednesday and Thursday. Trump said Redfield had provided “incorrect information.”