Senator Kennedy Tells FBI Director Wray: “You’re Going to Have to Assure the American People That the Rot Is Gone”

On 5/26/2022, Senator John Kennedy told FBI Director Christopher Wray that “millions of Americans think the FBI has become a political organization” and that Wray would eventually have to “assure the American people that the rot is gone.” Kennedy pressed Wray on the Sussmann trial, asking whether Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann had been given an FBI headquarters badge, whether the FBI concealed his identity when opening a file on his allegations, and whether the file falsely listed the DOJ as the source. Wray refused to answer any questions, citing the ongoing trial — but Kennedy made clear the reckoning was coming.

”The Rot Is Gone”

Kennedy delivered his message directly. “Chris, at some point, you’re going to have to address this. I understand you don’t want to address it in the middle of a prosecution,” Kennedy said. “But there are millions of Americans that look at this and think — I’m not saying they’re correct — that the FBI has become a political organization.”

“And at some point, you’re going to have to address that. The institution is just too important,” Kennedy continued. “Some of my colleagues may not want to talk about this, but we’re going to have to talk about it at some point.”

Kennedy closed with his central demand. “I thank you for coming, Chris. And I thank you for all the hard work you’ve done. But I’m going to stand by my comments. I think at the right time, you’re going to have to address this and ensure the American people that the rot is gone.”

Wray’s Defense

Wray cited his reforms. “I have implemented all sorts of reforms — over 40 corrective measures that deal with a lot of the same issues at the heart of the underlying investigation,” Wray said. “I completely turned over the entire leadership team in the FBI. We’ve taken disciplinary action where we could.”

On the FBI’s reputation, Wray pointed to field office visits. “Having been to all 56 of our field offices, what I find is a widespread, even resounding appreciation and respect for the men and women of the FBI,” Wray said. He noted that applications to be FBI special agents in Louisiana had “doubled” since he took over.

Sussmann Questions — All Unanswered

Kennedy posed a series of specific questions about the Sussmann case that Wray refused to answer:

Badge access: “Is it true that Michael Sussmann, a partner at Perkins Coie, counsel to the Hillary Clinton campaign, had a badge that gave him special privileges in entering the FBI building?”

“I just don’t think I can get into a discussion of those topics at the moment,” Wray said.

Concealed identity: “When the FBI opened a file to investigate Mr. Sussmann’s allegations, is it true that the FBI concealed Mr. Sussmann’s identity?”

“I completely understand your interest. I just don’t think I can get into a discussion of that here,” Wray repeated.

False sourcing: “Is it true that the file said the source of this information was not Mr. Sussmann, but the Department of Justice?”

“These are the very kinds of questions that are being litigated in front of the jury and Judge Cooper right now,” Wray said.

Kennedy established the key facts through his questions alone: Sussmann was counsel to Clinton’s campaign, he was the source of the now-disproven Trump-Russia back channel allegation, and the FBI had opened an investigation based on his information.

Kennedy vs. Committee Chair

The committee chair attempted to steer Kennedy away from the Sussmann questions. “Senator Kennedy, I would just urge you to follow a separate line of questioning,” the chair said.

“I appreciate that, Madam Chair. And you know how much I respect you. I want my time back, by the way,” Kennedy responded.

“You can have those three seconds,” the chair said.

“I know you talked for about 10 seconds. I’m happy to give you those 10 seconds,” Kennedy replied. “Thank you, Madam Chair. I appreciate your help with my questions, but I can handle it myself.”

The Bigger Picture

Kennedy’s questioning served a dual purpose. While the specific Sussmann trial answers were off-limits, the questions themselves laid out the narrative for the public: a Clinton campaign lawyer with special FBI access had fed false allegations about Trump to the FBI, the FBI had concealed the source, and the resulting investigation — which became the basis for years of Russia collusion claims — was built on politically motivated fabrications.

Kennedy was signaling that regardless of the Sussmann verdict, the institutional accountability question remained. The FBI had been used as a weapon against a political candidate and then a sitting president, and no amount of “corrective measures” would substitute for a public accounting.

Key Takeaways

Kennedy told Wray “millions of Americans think the FBI has become a political organization” and demanded he eventually “assure the American people that the rot is gone.”
Wray refused to answer whether Sussmann had an FBI headquarters badge, whether the FBI concealed his identity, or whether the file falsely listed DOJ as the source.
Wray cited “over 40 corrective measures” and said he had “completely turned over the entire leadership team.”
Kennedy established through his questions that Clinton’s campaign lawyer fed false Trump-Russia allegations to the FBI, which opened an investigation based on them.
Kennedy told the committee chair “I appreciate your help with my questions, but I can handle it myself.”

Transcript Highlights

The following is transcribed from the video audio (unverified — AI-generated from audio).

Millions of Americans think the FBI has become a political organization. At some point, you’re going to have to address that. The institution is too important.
At the right time, you’re going to have to ensure the American people that the rot is gone.
Is it true Sussmann had an FBI badge with special privileges? I don’t think I can get into that.
Is it true the FBI concealed Sussmann’s identity when it opened the file? I hope you’ll respect that I can’t discuss that.
I appreciate your help with my questions, Madam Chair, but I can handle it myself.
I completely turned over the entire leadership team. Over 40 corrective measures.

Full transcript: 997 words transcribed via Whisper AI.