FBI director Christopher Wray is testifying before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday as the agency continues its investigation into the failed assassination of former President Donald Trump as lawmakers continue their investigations into how the Secret Service failed to prevent the shooting and law enforcement continues to search for a motive behind the shooting.
“The attempted assassination of the former president was an attack on our democracy,” Wray said during his opening statement.
It will be the most in-depth comments yet from Wray as the FBI continues its investigation of the suspected 20-year-old gunman, Thomas Crooks, and what may have drove him to open fire at the rally, killing one person in the crowd, injuring two others and wounding Trump's right ear. The FBI is investigating the shooting as an act of domestic terrorism and an attempted assassination.
Wray said Wednesday that they have not uncovered any accomplices in the shooting. Investigators have been searching through the gunman's phone since the attack but have not found any explanation of his motive or anybody else who had helped him with it. But a search of his laptop uncovered a Google search of "How far was Oswald from Kennedy?" a reference to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
“That’s a search that obviously is significant in terms of his state of mind,” Wray said.
The FBI is generally secretive around active investigations but the public interest and extraordinary circumstances surrounding the attack has prompted agency officials to be more forthcoming with details and developments as they continue to piece things together.
Investigators recovered a drone Crooks flew around 200 yards away from the stage roughly two hours before Trump started to speak, which Wray said he was watching footage of on a live feed through a phone.
Snipers killed the suspected gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks, after seeing him on the nearby rooftop. He used an AR 15-style rifle that he purchased legally and eight bullet cartridges were recovered from the roof where he opened fire, Wray told lawmakers.
Two explosive devices were also found in Crooks' car, which Wray described as "relatively crude devices" but could be detonated remotely. The devices were both switched into the "off position," which meant they would not have worked if he tried to detonate them from the roof.
The hearing was scheduled before the July 13 shooting as part of routine oversight of the FBI and Justice Department, which have both under the spotlight in the GOP-led House for the criminal cases against the former president that are likely on hold past Election Day after the Supreme Court issued a ruling giving presidents immunity.
Wray and Attorney General Merrick Garland have both been the focus of repeated contentious hearings in front of House GOP-led committees amid lingering frustration over its 2016 investigation of Trump's ties to Russia, the prosecution of rioters at the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol and the legal cases against Trump.
“I’m sure you understand that a significant portion of the country has a healthy skepticism regarding the FBI’s ability to conduct a fair, honest, open and transparent investigation," Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said during the hearing.
The Secret Service has taken the brunt of the congressional criticism for the attempt on Trump's life, leading to the resignation of director Kimberly Cheatle, but Wray is likely to face tough questioning on the lack of details about a potential motive behind the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania. Cheatle faced the House earlier this week and was grilled for hours over the security lapse that allowed Crooks to get access to a rooftop some 150 yards away from where Trump was speaking with a gun, frequently frustrating lawmakers by dodging questions or failing to provide concise details.
Wray said he did not know why Trump was allowed to take the stage despite warnings of Crooks acting suspiciously to law enforcement.