The White House made an announcement on Tuesday that Donald Trump fired FBI Director James Comey.
Comey’s firing comes after Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his deputy, Rod Rosenstein, told Trump to do so, according to White House press secretary Sean Spicer.
“While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur with the judgment of the Department of Justice that you are not able to lead the bureau,” Trump wrote in a letter to Comey dated Tuesday.
“It is essential that we find new leadership for the FBI that restores public trust and confidence in its vital law enforcement mission,” the president wrote.
Trump called the FBI in a statement released by the White House “one of our Nation’s most cherished and respected institutions,” adding, “today will mark a new beginning for our crown jewel of law enforcement.”
Comey, back in March, announced that the bureau was investigating ties between the Trump campaign and Russia during the 2016 presidential election.
The White House also stated that a search for a new FBI director would “begin immediately.”
