US President Trump's firing of FBI Director James Comey has left Washington reeling as the White House searches for a replacement. Some critics have said Trump opened himself up to impeachment over the affair.
Image: Reuters/J. Lo Scalzo/G. Cameron
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US President Donald Trump's surprising move to fire the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), James Comey, sent resounding shockwaves throughout the US capital.
The next order of business in Washington will be naming an interim FBI head while the White House searches for a permanent replacement. While the process is sure to be politically charged, Trump's Republicans enjoy a razor-slim majority in the Senate, where the president's candidate will require a simple majority to enter office.
Some Democrats have suggested that they would oppose Trump's FBI chief nominee if the White House refuses to allow an independent special prosecutor to investigate alleged Russian meddling in the election.
"I would oppose confirmation of a new FBI director until there is support for a special prosecutor," Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal told reporters on Wednesday.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on Twitter that the Democrats "demand" the appointment of a special prosecutor.
Democrats said they are concerned that the Russia investigation will now be conducted by a hand-picked Trump ally, which they said could compromise the probe.
Who will be the new FBI head?
Although the White House hasn't named any potential candidate to serve as the new FBI director, US media reports have honed in on several possible picks:
Potential successors for James Comey at the FBI
US President Donald Trump fired James Comey as the director of the FBI and the search is on for his successor. DW looks at five men with a chance to become the top cop in the United States.
Image: Reuters/J. Roberts
Andrew McCabe
Currently serving as acting FBI director, McCabe was Comey's deputy since September 2016. His close ties with Comey and his involvement in both the FBI's investigations into Russia's role in the election and Clinton's emails could eliminate him from the running.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/J. Martin
Rudy Giuliani
The former mayor of New York City, Giuliani was previously a US attorney and one of Trump's main supporters during the election campaign. Giuliani denied that he was in the running for the position, but a source close to Trump told New York Magazine that he was being considered for the post.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Foley
Chris Christie
The governor of the state of New Jersey, Chris Christie is also a former US attorney. Despite running against Trump in the Republican primary elections, he was one of the first politicians to support Trump's presidential campaign. His nomination could hit a snag in the Senate, however, as his close ties with Trump could call his impartiality into question.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/M. Evans
Ray Kelly
Kelly served as New York City Police Department commissioner for an unprecedented 13 years. He was also under consideration for FBI director back in 1993 under President Bill Clinton so he could garner bipartisan support in the Senate.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/L. Lanzano
John Pistole
John Pistole is currently president of Anderson University in Indiana, but he is also a former deputy director of the FBI and the former Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). He has reportedly close ties with Vice President Mike Pence, who was governor of Indiana. There is a chance he could garner support from both Democrats and Republicans.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/epa/J. Lo Scalzo
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Where does this leave the Russia investigation?
The investigation is still on-going and Comey's departure does not change that. The question is who will now hold the reins.
As it is a part of the US Justice Department, the FBI's investigation is currently being overseen by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the investigation after it was revealed that he had his own contacts with Russia's ambassador in Washington.
There are also oversight investigations being pursued by the Senate and House intelligence committees. The committees, however, cannot bring criminal charges and are not privy to the same information as an FBI investigation. Their results can be issued in classified and public reports.
Why did Trump fire Comey?
Since dismissing Comey, Trump has stood by his rationale for the sacking, saying Comey "was not doing a good job" with the Clinton email probe. Sources speaking anonymously to US media told a very different story than the one coming from the White House.
The New York Times, CNN and the Washington Post all reported that shortly before Comey was fired, he requested additional funding and personnel for the FBI's Russia probe.
Some 30 officials from the White House, the Justice Department, the FBI and senior Republicans, told the Washington Post that Trump was angry with Comey for paying more attention to the Russia investigation and not inspecting leaks of White House policies to journalists.
Could Trump really be impeached over this?
The short answer? Not based on what is currently known about Russia's alleged role in manipulating the US election and not in the current US political landscape.
The long answer? Some observers have said Comey's dismissal could potentially be seen as an abuse of office - an impeachable offense - if Trump fired Comey to stop the investigations against himself and members of his campaign and administration.
The sacking of James Comey: How it came about
President Donald Trump's move to fire FBI Director James Comey has set off shock waves in Washington. From the probe into Hillary Clinton's emails to Trump's alleged Russia ties, we look at how it all got to this point.
Image: Getty Images/A. Harrer
May - July 2016: FBI investigates Clinton emails
FBI Director James Comey announces in May that the bureau will open an investigation into Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server for both her personal and government correspondence while secretary of state between 2009 and 2013. Two months later, Comey says that the FBI will not pursue criminal charges against Clinton, enraging Republican legislators.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo
October 3, 2016: Congressman's laptop seized
US authorities seize former New York congressman Anthony Weiner's laptop and mobile devices as part of a probe into allegations he sent sexually explicit text messages to a 15-year-old. They go on to discover emails from Clinton and Huma Abedin, Weiner's wife and a close Clinton aid, on the devices.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/EPA/A. Kelly
October 7, 2016: White House accuses Russia of meddling
The Obama administration publically accuses Moscow of meddling in the 2016 presidential election after WikiLeaks publishes a trove of confidential emails from the Democratic National Convention. In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security says it believes that "based on the scope and sensitivity of these efforts, only Russia’s senior-most officials could have authorized these activities."
Image: picture-alliance/Sputnik/A. Druzhinin
October 28, 2016: FBI reopens Clinton probe
Just days before the presidential election, Comey announces the FBI is reopening its investigation into Clinton's email on the back of evidence found on Weiner's laptop. "It took a lot of guts... But I’ll tell you what he did, he brought back his reputation," Republican nominee Donald Trump says. On November 6, the FBI concludes it found nothing in the emails to alter its original decision.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Thew
November 9, 2016: President-elect Trump
Trump is elected President, defeating Clinton by winning 304 electoral college votes to her 227.
Image: Getty Images/S. Eisen
March 20, 2017: Trump - Russia links
Comey confirms that the FBI is investigating alleged ties between Trump's election campaign team and the Russian government. The FBI director also dismisses the president's tweets alleging that Obama ordered Trump Tower to be wiretapped during the election.
Image: Reuters/J. Roberts
May 2, 2017: Clinton opens up
In her most extensive remarks since the divisive presidential election, Clinton says that Comey's email probe announcement in October contributed to her election defeat. Trump, meanwhile, takes a different view, tweeting that Comey "gave her a free pass for many bad deeds!"
Image: picture-alliance/AP Images/M. Altaffer
May 3, 2017: Comey defends pre-election decision
The very next day, Comey testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee, defending his decision to reopen the investigation into Clinton's email just days before the election. He says it makes him "nauseous" to think he could have affected the election, but adds that Abedin had forwarded "hundreds and thousands of emails (to Weiner), some of which contain classified information."
Image: Reuters/K. Lamarque
May 9: FBI clarifies Comey statement
The Washington Post newspaper and ProPublica investigative journalism network reveal that the FBI was forced to clarify in a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee that Comey had exaggerated about the number of emails Abedin forwarded.
Image: Reuters/B. Snyder
May 9, 2017: Comey fired
Trump, heeding advice from Department of Justice, fires Comey, informing him that he is "not able to effectively lead the bureau." In a memo, the White House says it "cannot defend the Director's handling of the conclusion of the investigation of Secretary Clinton's emails," and does "not understand his refusal to accept the nearly universal judgment that he was mistaken."
Image: Getty Images/A. Harrer
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Removing the president for committing an impeachable offense is a two-step process. First at least half of the lawmakers in the House of Representatives would have to vote to impeach the president, then after hearing evidence, at least two-thirds of the Senate would have to decide to convict the president and thus remove him from office.
While a case could possibly be made for Trump's impeachment on possible obstruction of justice charges over Comey's firing, there isn't enough credible evidence yet to prove it. Furthermore, Republicans in Congress do not seem interested in pursuing any investigation.
Although some Republicans have questioned the timing of Trump's decision, there is no indication that they would turn on the president in the number required for impeachment. The Republican Party enjoys majorities in both houses of the US Congress; so there is no chance Democrats could remove the president from office without Republican support.
The day after Comey's firing, Vice President Mike Pence said Trump "made the right decision at the right time." Similarly, leading Republicans including House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell also firmly stood behind Trump's decision.
McConnell also dismissed calls on Wednesday for a special prosecutor to be brought in on the Russia campaign, saying it "could only serve to impede the current work being done" by the FBI and the Senate intelligence committee.
