host: what host: so the time line is what christopher wray? guest: he needs a vote within the senate judiciary committee senate. by the full senator grassley seems to think that could happen before the town in mid-august or earlier, we'll see if that holds firm. all right, thanks for the information this morning. guest: thank you. to take a going short bake and come back and get on the house investigation into russia's 2016 election the with gregory meeks of new york. we'll be right back. >> with the help of our comcast partners, this weekend the tour takes book t.v. and american history t.v. to concord, massachusetts, where shots of the american revolution are fired and then a s than a century later, writer's revolution takes place, ralph wn becomes home to luisa alcott., and where de orchard house the groundbreaking work "little written and what thorough.d henry david "nature" set the -- >> the beginning of the american revolution through the window down the hill and later the revolution of thought, a ism and house with such great history. >

christopher wray from georgia, age 50. what questions will centers push with new developments of the russian investigation. don't miss a moment, that's nex next. >> shannon: we are moments away from the confirmation hearing of the fbi director christopher wray. now here with us, fox news politics enter. how much do you think this is not going to be about christopher wray and other topics? >> to a great degree. senators like to hear themselves talk and give speeches and put themselves in from the cameras. this is an opportunity to speak to the country over live coverage. we can expect that. also they might present other issues relevant to the discussion. and views on the loyalty to the president and constitution. also relationships to bob mueller and his relationship with james comey. in the background of the justice department when there were dramatic changes made and how the fbi looked at terrorism and try to prevent attacks. i think this will be an interesting hearing. >> shannon: he's taking his place there now. and the

tweet us what's on your mind with the #5at630 >>> watching two big story, christopher wray grilled byenate judiciary committee. he was nominated by the president to lead the fbi. he was a hi ranking official in george w bush justice department and later represented new jersey governor constitutes yes, it is in bridgegate >> we're following the latest developments in the russia investigation. donald trump junior spoke to fox and wanted to clear the air over the controversy surrounding that meeting last summer with the russian lawyer. >> in retrospect i would have done things differently. again this is before the russia mania, this was opposition research they had something, you know, maybe a concrete evidence to all the stories i had been hearing about that years, not just during the campaign. so i think i wanted to hear it out. really, it went nowhere and it was apparently that's not what the meeting was about >> donald trump junior said he never told his father about the meeting and today, in an interview with router's president trump said he didn't know until just a couple of days a

we had no idea christopher wray was representing the governor. and while he was representing the governor on the public's dime, if i had filed a public information request for christopher wray's bills, nothing would have come back because there was no documentation. >> wait. so when we heard about the chris christie's lawyer had his cell phone thing in the summer of 2016 as you say, that was the first time we knew that christopher wray was working for chris christie even though he had started doing that work in 2014? >> correct. we knew of another attorney representing the governor's office who billed in excess of $11 million and they wrote this investigative report that basically cleared the governor of wrongdoing. we thought that was the lawyer. we also knew there was a chief counsel also doing work on this case. we assumed that was it. but there was another guy doing work almost every day and that was christopher wray and we had no idea. >> billing millions of dollars for it. >> correct, including flights and meals. >> did any of christopher w

bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum ♪ lou: fbi director nominee christopher wray distances himself from firedmey today. wray addressing comey's handling of the hillary clinton. mail scandal during his senate confirmation hearing today. the. >> in my experience as prosecutor, as head of the criminal division i understand there to be department policies that govern public comments about uncharged individuals, i think those policies are there for a reason. i would follow those policies. >> okay. >> i can't imagine a situation where a fbi director i would be giving press conference on uncharged individual, much less talking to the hill about it. >> okay. lou: after recent revelations concerning his handling of classified information, joining us here tonight, fox news anchor, former defense attorney gregg jarrett. >> nice to be here, lou. lou: an unusual hearing today, as i said, ed rollins earlier, you would have thought that the democrats were leading the judiciary committee and the u.s. senate questioning that unfolded and to hear again, in this case, a nominee to be fbi director and in the cas

the predecessor of christopher wray was abruptly fired by the president and may and robert mueller, special product cuter -- special prosecutor that is heading the investigation. >> reporter: lindsey graham asked if he agrees with the president calling it a witch hunt. >> you believe this entire thing about the trump campaign and russia is a witchhunt? >> i do not consider director robert mueller on a witchhunt. >> reporter: dianne feinstein asked whether christopher wray signed off on the bush era torture memo and whether he agrees with the trump campaign comments about bringing back waterboarding. >> torture is wrong, unacceptable, illegal and unaffected. >> reporter: christopher wray is 50 years old, a graduate of yale university and the yale law school and in 1997 starting out as a federal process yeutter in georgia, and dc from 2001-2005 and eventually taking charge of the justice department criminal division and worked on cases with comey and mueller and later left for private practice specializing in white- collar crime. >> he will be investigating crimes and it can be crimes committ

the committee is considering, as you know, the nomination of christopher wray to be the eighth directorl bureau of investigation. mr. wray, congratulations to you and your family on your name nation. this is an important day for you, your family, and most importantly, this is an important day for the country considering the importance of the fbi and law enforcement in america. so i welcome you, mr. wray, and your family to the committee. the ranking member and i will give opening statements. then senator nunn will introduce the nominee. mr. wray will then give his opening statement and introduce anybody that he wants to that's here to support him and people that aren't here supporting him as well. and then after his opening statement, we will turn to questions. as an accommodation to the minority's request, we will have ten-minute rounds for questions during the first round rather than the normal seven. the director of the federal bureau of investigation is charged with running a vast agency with tremendous power. this power, if used appropriately, could threaten the civil liberties of

the committee is considering as you know the nomination of christopher wray to be the eighth directorf the federal bureau of investigation. mr. wray, congratulations to you and your family on your nomination. this is an important day for you, your family and most importantly this is an important day for the country considering the importance of the fbi and law enforcement in america. so i welcome you, mr. wray and your family to the committee. the ranking member and i will give opening statements, then senator nunn will introduce the nominee. mr. wray will then give his opening statement and introduce anybody that he wants to that's here to support him and people that aren't here supporting him as well, and then after his opening statement we will turn to questions. as an accusation to the minority's request, we will have ten minute rounds for questions during the first round rather than the normal seven. the director of the federal bureau of investigation is charged with running a vast agency with tremendous power. this power if used appropriately could threaten the civil liberties o

senators questioned christopher wray, a defense attorney under george w.about loyalty, the russia investigation and the wide range of issues he'll need to contend with on the job. >> my loyalty is to the constitution and to the rule of law. >> if the president asks you to do something unlawful or unethical, what do you say? >> fist i would try to talk him out of it, and if that failed, i would resign. >> i'm asking you as the future fbi director, do you consider this endeavor a witch-hunt? >> i do not consider director mueller to be on a witch-hunt. >> do you realize that you're stepping into the role of a director at fbi in one of the most contentious times in the history of american politics. >> as senator nunn said there have been a lot of are contentious times, but i think this one certainly ranks up there. >> for more insight, congresswoman, thanks for being here. >> thanks for having me. >> you have worked with mr. wray. the what's your take on how he would handle the job as fbi director? and what's he like as a person? >> well, you know, i worked at

reporter: two big main lines of questioning for the man who may loot the fbi, christopher wray.d trump, jr., do the right thing taking meeting with russian sources who promised incriminating information on hillary clinton? two, would wray have recommended charges against hillary clinton regarding her handling of classesfied information even before an investigation was conducted as the former head of the fbi did? on the subject of russia, wray had this exchange with senator lindsey graham. >> if i got a call from somebody saying the russian government wants to help lindsey graham get reelected, they have dirt on lindsey graham's opponent, should i take that meeting? >> senator i would think you would want to consult with good legal advisors before you did that. >> so is the answer should i call the fbi? >> i think it would be wise -- >> you are going to be the director of the fbi. reporter: wray, former department of justice official and lawyer, repeatedly asked whether he would have publicly declared in a press conference that former fbi director james comey that he would not br

<christopher wray> "that's never been my experience with him."y disputed president trump's opinion of the bureau's former leader, and of the muller investigation. "do you consider this endeavor a witch hunt?" "i do not consider director mueller to be on a witch hunt."on donald trump junior's efforts to get russian campaign dirt on hillary clinton ... "let me ask you this. if i got a call from somebody saying the russian government wants to help lindsey graham re-elected, they've got dirt on lindsey graham's opponent -- should i take that meeting?" "well, senator, i would think you'd want to consult with some good legal advisers before you did that."last night on fox news, trump junior downplayed his meeting with a russian lawyer. "for me, this was opposition research. they had something that may be concrete evidence to all the stories i'd been hearing about, but were probably under-reported for, you know, years."today his father tweeted, "my son donald did a good job

>> i am convinced after my conversation with christopher wray that he will be independent, that he willhe integrity of the fbi. i will

christopher wray was askedif president.d he said he didn't. the questions started at him as part of this senate confirmation hearing, a sign, babita, that politicians on both sides of the political aisle have misgivings about the sort of treatment that the incoming head of the fbi might be exposed to under the fbi might be exposed to under the trump administration. david, tell us more about what the president himself has been saying with regards to his son's involvement with the russian allegations. it's interesting because there's talk of paralysis in the building behind me at the moment. the president said to be furious and frustrated by the amount of coverage that's been devoted to this rush of controversy and cable news reports have said he has been holed up at the white house since returning from the g20 summit and basically he's been watching this whole controversy unfold, much to his chagrin, on television, while in response to those suggestions, donald trump today tweeted saying the white house is functioning perfec

christopher wray at his confirmation hearing, he is president donald trump's nominee for the new fbi director. members of the judiciary committee are grilling him about the russian probe, hillary clinton's email and the firing of james comey. weijia jiang has more. >> reporter: christopher wray told senate lawmakers he plans to lead an independent fbi director if he wants to be the top agency. >> i will never allow the fbi's work to be driven by anything other than the fact, the law, and the impartial pursuit of justice. >> reporter: charles grassley chairs the senate judiciary committee. >> mr. christopher wray has are ine attorneys across the country and the director of the fbi needs to be effective and needs to be accountable. >> anybody who thinks i would pull punches as the fbi director doesn't know me very well. >> reporter: he has extensive legal experience and let the just a bit's department criminal division during the george w. bush administration and help develop the legal response to terrorism and national security threats. if confirmed, mr. ray will replace james comey,

. >> reporter: the senate topic with christopher wray on wednesday and christopher wray said he would resist any undue pressure from the white house on russia. >> no ways asked me at any point during this process and i did not offer one. >> reporter: christopher wray said he does not believe that robert mueller investigation into russia is a witchhunt directly contradicting the president, caroline shively fox news from washington. >>> the man that president trump nominated to be the fbi director does not see eye to eye with the president on some issues and christopher wray spent hours answering questions at the senate confirmation hearing and said he is still upset about the sudden firing of form fbi director james comey. he said he does not consider special counselor robert mueller russian investigation a witchhunt as the president called it. senator dianne feinstein question christopher wray about his involvement in national security during the bush administration when they authorized waterboarding for interrogation technique. >> my view is that torture is wrong, unacceptable and il

<christopher wray> "that's never been my experience with him."wray disputed president trump's opinion of the bureau's former leader, and of the muller investigation. "do you consider this endeavor a witch hunt?" "i do not consider director mueller to be on a witch hunt."on donald trump junior's efforts to get russian campaign dirt on hillary clinton ... "let me ask you this. if i got a call from somebody saying the russian government wants to help lindsey graham re-elected, they've got dirt on lindsey graham's opponent -- should i take that meeting?" "well, senator, i would think you'd want to consult with some good legal advisers before you did that."last night on fox news, trump junior downplayed his meeting with a russian lawyer. "for me, this was opposition research. they had something that may be concrete evidence to all the stories i'd been hearing about, but were probably under-reported for, you know, years."today his father tweeted, "my son donald did a good j

it is important we have a strong working relationship with christopher wray. in public just as testimony yesterday that he would be independent and not abide political interference. it is an unfortunate fact that 2017 we have to get these kind of assurances since we have seen this administration and president in particular ask for the type of loyalty oaths from director comey and reports of similar efforts to undermine the investigation in terms of other conversations. i feel comfortable with the assurances i received and i look forward to actually supporting mr. wray when his nomination comes to the floor. i also raised another item of importance, and perhaps more parochial to the region, but over the last number of years, there has been a very creative effort to move the fbi headquarters out of its downtowned building in washington, d.c., and move the headquarters to a location either in virginia or maryland. i have been a strong advocate of the virginia location, but the fact is that whether they were to move to virginia or maryland, the one thing that is a

i'm janelle wang, christopher wray reveals where his loyalties lie and they are not with the president. that story next. >>> right now at 6:30 in the hot seat, president trump's pick for the fbi director promising strict independence in his confirmation hearing. >>> christopher wray says he will play it straight and by the book. >> he's regarded as well-qualified to lead the fbi but after the messy firing of james comey, ray faced tough questions. janelle wang joins us with details. >> raj, jessica, christopher wray is a prosecutor and justice department official under president george w bush. lawmakers did not let him off easy grilling him for four and a half hours. >> the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you god. >> i do. >> christopher wray's conpir mansi -- confirmation hearing guided by the firing of his predecessor. >> if the president asks you do something unlawful or uneat kth, what do you say? >> first, i would try to talk him out of it and if that fails, i would resign. >> pointed questions about the investigation into russian election meddling over seen by rober

: at our table this morning, justice correspondent for npr about thenson to talk fbi nominee christopher wray testifying on capitol

reporter: i can tell you that there will be poignant questions at the hearing tomorrow on this to christopher wray, particularly how he plans to take up the ongoing investigation into whether there was any kind of relationship with the russians and the trump campaign. we should note it was not just donald trump junior at this meeting. it was also jared kushner, the president's son-in-law and

virginia senator mark warner met with christopher wray on thursday. after their meeting, senator warner spoke with reporters. >> it includes things like counter espionage. you were the class of 92? >> yes. times can get you in a hurry. yesterday, i noticed not a job for the faint of heart, but i am not the faint of heart. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> thank you. i just concluded a very productive conversation with the president's nominee to head the fbi, christopher wray. i went over a number of items with him and i said i thought he had done a very good job before the judiciary committee yesterday. i ss

. >> reporter: today, christopher wray was this the hot seat. >> if i am given the honor of leading thegency, i will not allow the fbi's work to be driven by anything but the facts, the law and the pursuit of justice. >> reporter: christopher wray fielded questions from senators on a range of topics including the firing of james comey and the president's latest tweets. >> do you believe in light of the donald trump junior e-mail that this is a witch hunt. >> i do not consider it to be a witch hunt. >> you do not think that james comey is a nut job? >> that's not my experience. >> reporter: he said that nobody in the white house asked him for a lowlt pledge. >> he has to show that there is going to be a new way of conducting business, that they are not going to be a political organization, they are not going to change the name of an investigation into a matter because of political pressure. >> reporter: when questioned, christopher wray said he would quit before breaking the law for the president. >>> meanwhile, the head of the senate judiciary committee will ask paul manafort to testify

remember, christopher wray is in this position right now because he's predecessor james comey was firedesident during the spring. that, of course, has led to these accusation that is that firing was aimed by the white house at shutting down the fbi's russia investigation. now, today, senators wanted to know how independent chris wray would be as fbi director, his answers? that he would not accept the majority of any one-on-one conversations with the president, said, he would stockade himself against any interference from anybody. including the president on how the fbi handles its investigations. >> i think the relationship between president needs to be a professional one. not a social one. and there certainly shouldn't be discussion between one-on-one discussions between the fbi director and any president about particular -- how to conduct particular investigation, or cases. >> reporter: the senator wanted to know if wray agreed with the president's statement that the investigation into the russia trump campaign is a witch hunt. wray said no. >> is senator i can tell you my experience >

christopher wray. congressional correspondent nancy cordes is on capitol hill. >> no one asked me for any kind of loyalty oath at any point during this process, an i sure as heck didn't offer one. >> reporter: christopher wray told senators today he's been assured he won't face the kind of presidential pressure his predecessor outlined in a series of memos. >> if the president asks you to do something unrawfl or unethical, what do you say? >> first, i would try the talk him out of it. if that failed, i would resign. >> reporter: christopher wray says he met with president trump twice last month. >> i went into both meetings listening very carefully to make sure that i didn't hear something that would make me uncomfortable. >> reporter: wray headed the justice department's criminal division before entering private practice. he was new jersey governor chris christie's personal lawyer during the bridgegate scandal. but he is seen by both sides as a straight shooter. >> i did not consider director mueller

i want to talk about christopher wray. it would appear that we are going to see the president's nominee for the fbi director go through. democrats and republicans saying that today. why does the president like him? >> why does the president like him? you know, honestly, i don't think i can answer that question in full. i think president trump relied on the advice of counsel. president trump is not an animal of washington. he is not a swamp thing. he doesn't have 30 years of history with people coming up through the system. honestly, he's relying on the advice of his inner circle to guide him to a nominee, as was the case with the supreme court and would be the case with an awful lot of appointments for these high ranking washington jobs. president trump doesn't have a stable of friends to call on, allies to call on, as people like, for example, hillary clinton would have. >> harris: you mean inside the belt way? >> right. >> harris: he did represent governor christie in bridge gate. he does have a track record people can f

christopher wray was asked a number of questions about whether he was asked to take a loyalty pledge.t's something that james comey testified to last month. something that he felt uncomfortable with. wray confirmed today that he has met with the president along with a group of others at least twice and that he did not have the same experience. >> my loyalty is to the constitution, to the rule of law and to the mission of the fbi. no one asked me for any kind of loyalty oath at any point during this process. i sure as heck didn't offer one. >> also, what you told me yesterday, you wouldn't give one if asked. >> correct. >> and wray was also asked how he would deal with any kind of political pressure or influence from the white house. >> if the president asked you to do something unawful or unethical, what do you say? >> first, i would try to talk him out of it. if that failed, i would resign. >> on russian government interference in the 2016 election, wray said consistently that he believed it's a seteled matter, shep. >> shepard: that white house news briefing has begun and sarah huck

. >>> president donald trump's choice at a senate confirmation hearing today christopher wray said he has not had time to read up on this controversy surrounding donald trump jr.. he also said he was not asked about the firing of james comey. he was not asked for his loyalty . >> my commitment is to the rule of law, to the constitution to follow the facts wherever they may lead, and there isn't a person on this planet whose lobbying or influence could convince me to just drop or abandon a properly predicated and meritorious investigation.>> christopher wray says he also does not consider the russian investigation a witchhunt. he is a former high-ranking justice department official under george w. bush and had wide spread support today . >>> tensions are high tonight between san francisco police and skateboarders following a street race near dolores park last night. this video showed that race down the hill and how it ended. a skateboarder and officer were injured. terry moriarty says the video is now sparking controversy about whether the officer tried to intentionally hurt that skate

liz: there is news coming out what christopher wray, said, quote.the election process at the white house for that. he would not give one if asked. he also said he would never allow the fbi's work to be driven by anything other than the facts. stuart: he has said, and i am quoting now, my loyalty is to the constitution. that is what he said. >> that is word for word what i said he would say you know. that is what anybody in his position would say. stuart: yes, absolutely. you know, there is no fireworks, not that i have seen. our produce remembers watching this very closely obviously. no fireworks. no real hustling backwards and forwards. liz? liz: he also said, christopher wray said he did not discuss james comey's firing with anyone at the white house. you're right, no fireworks coming out of this. stuart: remember please the committee members have ten minutes to ask questions. ashley: used to be seven. stuart: now they extended it into 10. maybe they get into this a little more later on but so far they have not laid a glove on the guy, the russia,

that is one of the ways that people may know christopher wray's name. the day before the president tweeted out, this is a guy that he wanted, this is the person he felt comfortable with. there are some things in christopher wray's resume that both sides of the political aisle agree upon. regarding the texture, the meeting, the tenor of the meeting between donald trump, jr., and a russian attorney. let's watch a little bit of that because you mentioned -- i got kind of chippy in between. in that exchange. >> do you believe that in light of the don, jr., email and other allegations that this whole thing about trump campaign as a witch hunt? is that a fair description of what we are all dealing with in america? >> senator, i can't speak to the basis of those comments. i can tell you that my experience -- go >> i'm asking you as future fbi director, do you consider this endeavor witch hunt? >> i do not consider him to be on a witch hunt. >> thank you. >> could he be independent from the president? these are issues -- >> sandra: he's led up to that many time

nominee climb the ranks of comey -- with the likes of and yates, christopher wray testifying this morning or the be shortly, before senate judiciary committee. feinstein on your screen, member committee, as that hearing gets underway on c-span 3. at can watch it online c-span.org. back to calls, lawrence, assachusetts, james, hello there. caller: hello. host: hi, you're on the air, go ahead. caller: hi. when you first started the show, the ead an article about dossie r that they were using trump. donald host: yes. caller: and you said it ahead of below, the entence one last sentence you didn't get dossierhe fact that the was commissioned by hillary clinton. complaining about donald trump talking to a dossier that he was commissioned as op ed piece hillary clinton relied on russians, whichm was distributed by that steele me that was -- it seems to we got a push in the situation here that everybody seems to be russians and it hypocrisy t make -- of what is going on is country, it'sthis got to stop some place. theantics and tantrums, people just take w up, they sarkastic remark and twist to

. >> christopher wray a former federal prosecutor fielding questions from senators on a range of topics including the firing of his potential predecessor james comey and president donald trump's latest tweet . >> do you believe in light of the donald trump jr. email and other allegations that this whole thing about the trump campaign in russia is a witchhunt?>> i do not consider director robert mueller to be on a witchhunt. >> he testified no one at the white house have asked him for a loyalty pledge.>> christopher ray in order to be effective at the fbi has got to show there will be a new way of conducting business. they will not be a political organization. they will not change the name of an investigation into a matter because of political pressure.>> when questioned about his priorities robert mueller said he would quit before he ever broke the law to help a president. >> live from washington thank you. >>> mitch mcconnell helps to release the republicans revised healthcare bill tomorrow and bring it up for a vote next week. he can afford only 2 republican deflections and president

christopher wray promising not to make the same mistakes james comey made. senator lindsey graham peppered wray with questions about collusion with the trump campaign. >> as the future f.b.i. director, do you consider this endeavor a witch hunt? >> i do not consider director mueller a witch hunt. trish: but it is a witch hunt. that's what alan just said. he made the point he's a liberal democrat who did not vote for donald trump, but he does not like to see what the mainstream media and the democrats are trying to do because they are on a witch hunt. bill, what many the expression, fit looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it's a duck. any sane person look at this with the likes of tim kaine and blumenthal calling it treason, isn't this a witch hunt in. >> i think the next director handled it extremely well. he wanted to step away from the concept of calling the overall thing a witch hunt. so he said and we just herd him say he doesn't think bob's investigation is a witch hunt. he walked away from his idea of the whole thing. trish: polit

terry johnson on fbi director or nominee christopher wray and the future of the fbi. on congressman gregory meeks investigation into russian interference in u.s. election. announcer: ♪ host: good morning. it is thursday, july 13. president trump has left washington for paris. today, he will meet with emmanuel macron. they will hold a joint news conference later this morning. look for our coverage on www.c-span.org. more in today's papers about the president's son meeting with that russian lawyer last summer. the males revealed by donald trump jr. have triggered a closer look at surveillance of russian medications. the emails revealed by donald trump jr. have triggered a closer look at surveillance of russian communications. 202-748-8000 if you think they interfered. if you do not think they interfered, call 202-748-8001. to know why you think yes or no to this question of russia's interference in our campaign. this was a line of questioning for christopher wray, who the president nominated to replace james comey is fbi director. yesterdaycapitol hill for his confirmat

christopher wray said no one had asked him for a loyalty oath as trump reportedly asked me to give. south carolina republican senator lindsey graham asked wray about trump's claim on twitter wednesday that special counsel robert mueller's investigation into ties between russia and trump's associates is "the greatest witch hunt in political history." >> senator, i can't speak to the basis for those comments. my experience -- >> i am asking you if the future fbi director. do you consider this a witch hunt? >> i do not consider director mueller to be on a which time. amy: christopher wray is a defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor who served as assistant attorney general under george w. bush from 2003 to 2005, at a time when the justice department's office of legal counsel signed off on the use of torture against detainees in cia and military custody. at wednesday's confirmation hearing, illinois senator dick durbin asked wray whether he approved a memo that retain a policy by then-deputy attorney general jay bybee approving of waterboarding and other forms of torture. >> in a fo

praising christopher wray as a rising star. he suggested that i recommend him to my former senate colleagues as a terrific choice to be confirmed to head the criminal division of the department of justice. since that time i followed his career in and out of government. can i have satisfied myself fully to my support for christopher in 2003 was well-placed. i can assure this committee that chris embodies the same trades that enabled griffin bell to rebuild public companies in the department of justice, quickness of mind, candor, integrity and independence. a couple of questions. what is the basis of my confidence in chris? senator feinstein, hope to address some of your questions and answering that question that i posed. from his service as assistant united states attorney in atlanta in 1997. where chris worked with the fbi in the trenches of federal criminal investigations and prosecutions. two 2001 when he served as then larry thompson's principal debbie. as has been a leader in helping the guy the department of justice includ

director, christopher wray was pressed on that point.had a different view of the investigations-- including special counsel robert mueller's probe-- than the man who nominated him. >> i'm asking you as the future f.b.i. director: do you consider this endeavor a witch hunt? >> i do not consider director mueller to be on a witch hunt. >> reporter: meanwhile, the president's legal team tried to distance their client from his namesake. >> the president was not aware of the meeting, did not participate in the meeting, did not attend the meeting and was only made aware of the emails-- actually reading the emails, seeing the emails, was yesterday when they were released. for mr. trump, the russia story has become a burden he cannot escape, no matter how hard the tries. every time he appears to be moving in a different direction, another disclosure puts it right back front and center. today, russian foreign minister sergei lavrov seemed to sympathize. >> ( translated ): today i turned on the tv again, and all the western channels are discussing

. >>> president trump selection, christopher wray will appear before the senate judiciary committee, nominated to take over for james comey and if confirmed christopher wray would take over the fbi and you senate judiciary committee chairman says he hopes to have the confirmation completed before the august recess. >>> officials and oversee elections around the country are concerned about the security for the next national elections and secretaries of state from around the country met in indiana over the weekend, and they are unsure whether adequate safeguards can be put in place before the 20 18th congressional elections, republicans and democrats frustrated by the lack of information from the federal government. they are concerned after reports that say russian agents targeted voter registration in 20 states and the russian military tried to hack into the software for voter registration in eight states. >>> steve and eugen says that trumpet administration still plans on passing tax in saying the focus is cutting tax for middle-class americans and businesses saying they plan on rele

host: coming up, npr justice correspondent carrie johnson joins us to take a look at christopher wray's nomination to become fbi director. flatlyn, president putin denies interfering with the u.s. presidential election. we will ask congressman meeks what he thinks. we will be right back. ♪ >> this weekend on american history tv on c-span3, saturday at 8:00 p.m. eastern on "lectures in history," appellation state university professor discusses george mcclellan's failed attempts to take the confederate capital enrichment. >> they have not done an awful lot of research about what this peninsula looks like and what marching along this peninsula would be like, but he is so dead set on making sure that he does not concede anything to lincoln that he basically puts his army on the peninsula in the spring of 1862. it is going to turn out to be the worst possible place to launch his campaign. >> sunday at 6:30 p.m., on the anniversary of the salem witch trials, margo burns talks about the primary sources from the trials compiled in the book "records from the salem witch hunt." >> that is one rea

thank you, manu raju. >>> let's talk more about the testimony we just heard on the hill from christopher wray. again the president's pick to replace fired fbi director james comey. i want to bring in gloria and our chief national security correspondent, jim scuitto. jim, wray seemed to say everything lawmakers wanted to hear. we heard a lot of affirmation, good answer, in response to questions including whether he believes donald trump jr. should have gone to the fbi about his russian contact. >> well, it's interesting. perhaps a more nuanced answer on that. on the big picture things, he was very clear cut. he said he was not asked, for instance, for a loyalty pledge by the president, that, of course, referencing back to what james comey said that he was. he said if he was given an illegal order, he would not obey that order. he said he might even resign under those circumstances. all those answers that really senators wanted to hear from both parties, as well as a definitive statement from him that russia is an adversary and on that point somewhat contradicting the president or going much fu

nominee, director nominee christopher wray. talk about the independence of the f.b.i.talking with a number of attorneys, whether it be jarett or any number of attorneys. the f.b.i. is not an independent agency of any sort or kind. >> no. exactly. it's one thing to say i'll be guide by law, not politics. i'll be independent of the political wind. but comey asserted implicitly that he was independent of any accountability. that's what you don't want in government. he's an interior for in the executive branch. if you say it's independent, that would mean back when j. edgar hoover was investigating martin luther king, jr. would it have been improper for john f. kennedy to say don't do that? you are violating the man's rights? lou: certainly that is the system and the reality of the matter that the f.b.i. director may not want to have dinner with the president, but that won't be his choice. he works for the president, he works for the attorney general. >> that's right. what the democrat want, they want to create the situation where the f.b.i. director is constantly being to

christopher wray is widely regarded as well qualified to lead the fbi. after the messy firing of james comey, wray faced unusual pointed questions. pete williams has details. >> christopher wray entered the hearing with one overriding mission -- demonstrate his independence from the president who nominated him after firing fbi director james comey. >> i will never allow the fbi's work to be driven by anything other than the facts, the law and the impartial pursuit of justice. period. full stop. >> he said no one, including donald trump, asked him to it pledge loyalty, something comey said the president asked of him. >> it got then awkward and i then said you will always have honesty from me. >> to one asked me for a loyalty oath at any point during this process and i didn't offer one. >> if the president asks you to do something unlawful or unethical, what do you say? >> first, i would try to talk him out of it. if that failed, i would resign. >> wray is a former federal prosecutor in atlanta and a senior official in the george w. bush justice department

>> you opened today talking about the strong character and integrity of christopher wray. he said during the hearing today that he does not consider mueller's probe to be a witch hunt, neither does the justice department, so why does the president continue to call it a witch hunt, speesespecially now there's hard evidence released by his own son showing that russia sought to interfere in the election? >> i think the president made his position clear on that, and it certainly has not changed. >> do you know why he calls it a witch hunt? >> because the president knows very specifically any action or inaction that he's taken, so i think that's pretty clear. >> does that include members of his campaign? >> look, i think we've been extremely clear, and i know don jr. was and discussed it at length last night, as did the president's personal counsel over the last couple of days and have walked through that very detailed. i think if there's been any evidence of collusion in 2016 that's come out at all or been discussed that's actually happened, it would be between the dnc and the