Trump, speaking to a group of television anchors at the White House Thursday, said that Lieberman, the former senator from CT and Democratic vice presidential nominee, is his leading candidate to run the agency.
Between Donald Trump’s sudden decision to fire FBI Director James Comey last week and former agency head Robert Mueller’s appointment as special prosecutor for all things Russian Federation, the “Bureau” has received a lot of publicity lately. Joseph Lieberman departs the White House after meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump May 17, 2017 in Washington, DC.
Ms Neera Tanden, president of the Centre for American Progress, a Democratic think tank, also opposes Mr Lieberman, saying he lacks law enforcement experience and is close to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a former U.S. senator.
Apart from Lieberman, other three candidates were Frank Keating, Richard McFeely and Andrew McCab.
The Justice Department, in an attempt to quell the furor over Comey’s ouster, this week hired former FBI Director Robert Mueller as a special counsel to lead the investigation.
“Joe Lieberman has more experience than all of my Democrat colleagues combined, so screw them”, McCain said of Democrats’ concerns.
“I don’t think there’s going to be much excitement about that from our side of the aisle”, said Sen. “We don’t need anyone who’s put on a red shirt, or a blue shirt – or who’s campaigned for president”.
In recent decades, FBI Directors have been recruited from the legal profession, as opposed to the political arena. Joe Lieberman was among the candidates. John Cornyn of Texas, predicted there would be strong support for Lieberman when that chamber voted to confirm him – Cornyn predicted the nominee would receive all 100 Senate votes – there’s been a steady drumbeat of Democratic dissatisfaction with the possible candidacy of the Democrat-turned-independent.
First elected in 1988, Lieberman served as a Democrat until 2006, when he became an independent who caucused with the Democrats.
The president also replied “he is” when asked whether Mr Lieberman is a top candidate for the position. He then endorsed McCain for president in 2008 and spoke at the Republican National Convention that year.
Considered a moderate with ties to members of both parties in Congress, Lieberman was state attorney general from 1983 till 1989 in CT before being elected to the US Senate from 1989-2013.
Most well-known for the eight years (1995 to 2003) he served as Oklahoma’s governor, Keating also has spent some time in the Federal Bureau of Investigation. According to several media reports, Republican Senator Mike Lee first suggested Garland for the appointment and Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell supported his candidacy.
