GOP senators question whether Cornyn should get FBI job

Influential Senate Republicans are questioning whether one of their own — Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn — should be tapped to run the FBI, amid a deeply chaotic political environment after President Donald Trump fired James Comey as director of the bureau.

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While Cornyn is one of the more popular members of the Senate GOP Conference, a number of his colleagues are skeptical that he would be the right choice for the job, worried that such a pick would be viewed as too political at a time when many critics are questioning whether Comey was fired to slow-walk the FBI’s investigation into alleged Russian coordination with the Trump campaign during last year’s elections.

On Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell declined to put his weight behind his top deputy, instead pushing another potential candidate, Merrick Garland, who was former President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court pick before the majority leader led an effort to scuttle his nomination last year. Sen. Lindsey Graham, who serves on the Senate judiciary committee with Cornyn, suggested that it made sense to name an FBI agent to the post — rather than the Texas Republican.

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