‘Makes Absolutely No Sense’: FBI Director Clashes With Ron Johnson Over Bias, Reminds Senator He’s a ‘Lifelong Republican’

FBI Director Christopher Wray lit into Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) during a Senate hearing on Tuesday after Johnson accused the FBI of partisanship.

Wary pushed back on Johnson, saying, “I see an FBI every day that conducts themselves with integrity and professionalism and selflessness and rigor. And I do not accept the characterization of our performance in this particular case.”

“That’s not how I characterized it. I’m talking about partisanship at the top,” interjected Johnson, raising his voice.

“May I finish up?” Wray asked of the chairman.

“With some specific partisan actors. I said the vast majority of the 38,000 are people of integrity,” Johnson added, insisting he did not mean to attack the entire FBI as partisan.

“And the idea that I, as a Republican appointee and a lifelong Republican is biased in the way that you are describing makes absolutely no sense,” Wray shot back.

“I’m happy to read you chapter and verse of all the reasons why that credibility has been destroyed,” Johnson, who has been known to push conspiracy theories, shot back.

Wray appeared before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Tuesday to discuss national security threats to the U.S.

“Protecting Americans from the threat of terrorism is and remains our number one priority. But as you all know, the range of threats we battle each and every day is enormous. From cyber attacks, to economic espionage, to violent crime and narcotics trafficking—and everything in between. And none of the problems we tackle are getting any easier,” Wray said in his opening statement, adding:

But we’ve continued to work to outpace our adversaries by disrupting over 40% more cyber operations last year and arresting over 60% more cyber criminals than the year before. We’re aggressively working to protect America’s economic security from China’s relentless efforts to steal our innovation and intellectual property, with around 2,000 active investigations across all 56 FBI field offices.

And over the past two years, we’ve seized enough fentanyl to kill 270 million people—that’s more than 80% of Americans. I’m incredibly proud of the FBI’s 38,000 skilled and dedicated employees who tackle these complex challenges to protect their fellow Americans.

Johnson has long criticized the FBI over its handling of investigations into President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden.

Watch the full clip above via C-SPAN.