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Lakewood Times

Lakewood Times

Lakewood Times

    FBI Deputy Director McCabe Steps Down

    FBI+Deputy+Director+McCabe+Steps+Down

    On Monday, January 29, FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe announced that he would be stepping down from his role and leaving the bureau immediately. McCabe was already expected to retire in March, so the move to leave immediately has come as a big surprise to many in the bureau. McCabe’s decision comes as new FBI Director Christopher Wray is beginning to settle into his role. Sources close to the situation say that Wray told McCabe that he was bringing in his own team, which McCabe would not be a part of. Wray also told McCabe that his future at the bureau was entirely up to him, and that Wray would allow McCabe to stay on if he chose to do so.

    McCabe’s departure comes after months of non-stop pressure from President Trump and Republican lawmakers. In July of 2017 Trump wasn’t even trying to hide his displeasure with McCabe and the Russia investigation, tweeting, “”Why didn’t A.G. Sessions replace Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, a Comey friend who was in charge of Clinton investigation but got big dollars ($700,000) for his wife’s political run from Hillary Clinton and her representatives. Drain the Swamp!” Trump is referring to McCabe’s wife, who ran for the Virginia State Senate and received campaign donations of almost $500,000 from then-Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe’s political action fund.

    There were other donations made to McCabe’s campaign that were made in September and October of 2015, which is before McCabe took over as Deputy Director, and before McCabe had any oversight over any Clinton-related investigation. According to the Washington Post, when Trump learned of the donations from the McAuliffe PAC, he asked Deputy Director McCabe who he voted for in the 2016 election, which has raised a lot of eyeballs in Washington. However, according to people with access with the Virginia voter rolls, McCabe voted in the 2016 Republican primary, but not the 2016 general election.

    With McCabe out at the FBI, the Russia investigation will be in the hands of Republican lawmakers and Trump-appointed officials at the FBI and Department of Justice, with the exception of Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Any efforts by Trump supporters to claim the Russia investigation is tainted will have hard time justifying their claims, especially now that McCabe is gone for good.

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