The hearing will come to order. Director wray, appreciate you coming over. Try to get you out of here by 1 00. You have an agency to run. Well do seven minute rounds. If theres cleanup, well try to accommodate. Briefly, the oversight hearing comes at an important time. Even though theres no evidence the russians changed the tally of the 2016 election, i think they exceeded their wildest expectations in terms of interfering with the 2016 election. I think all of us are interested in what to do to make sure it doesnt happen in 2020. I am very interested in what china is doing, section 2015 authorities are about to expire. I want to hear from the director what that means to the country. We have a fisa warrant investigation coming soon, a problem with media leaks at the fbi. Having said all that, it has been a difficult time for the fbi. Lets not let a few bad actors taint a great organization. Before we start, we appreciate what you do. Without their service, this country would be a dangerous place to live in. Well do everything we can to get the budget deal through, sequestration would be a slap in the face. Thanks, very much, mr. Chairman. Let me reiterate welcome. It is great to see you. Slightly more gray than we saw you last time. I guess theres good reason for that. In any event, welcome. It has been nearly two years since you were confirmed to run the fbi and so we have a lot of important topics to cover. I think during this time gloks and rule of law have come under attack. Foreign governments have interfered in the United States elections and continue to conduct influence campaigns designed to divide americans on racial, religious, and political lines. The president has declared he has an absolute right to control the justice department, that the executive branch is immune from congressional oversight, and those that disagree with him can go back where they came from. Over the past few years, the president has attacked the fbi, describing the bureau in tweets as corrupt and full of dirty cops. Hes also suggested the fbi is part of a deep state, and politically biased against him. It is my view that these claims are false and that theyre harmful. They undermine Public Confidence in the fbis ability to enforce the law impartially, which you do, internal employee surveys show while morale was high in 2016 under former director comey it is declined in 2017 after the president fired the director and began publicly attacking the bureau. While the president has claimed that the fbis investigation of his campaigns possible coordination with russia was started illegally, the Mueller Report confirms that there was a legitimate and lawful reason to open the investigation. The Mueller Report explains the fbi started investigation possible coordination between the Trump Campaign and russia in response to information provided by a Foreign Government shortly after wikileaks started releasing documents stolen by russia from the dnc. The Mueller Report further explains in late july, 2016 shortly after wikileaks first started releasing information, stolen by russia from dnc computers, australia told the fbi that months earlier Trump Campaign adviser George Papadopoulos had told australias top diplomat in britain that russia had dirt on Hillary Clinton in the form of thousands of emails and that russia had indicated it could help the Trump Campaign by releasing the stolen emails to damage candidate clinton. In fact, the Mueller Report concluded the Trump Campaign welcomed, encouraged and expected to benefit electorally from russias efforts. We should be grateful for the work that Law Enforcement does to stop Foreign Governments from interfering in United States elections. This is especially true now with another president ial election ahead. We know that russias efforts are ongoing and that other foreign powers will not hesitate to exploit opportunities to interfere in our elections and democracy. You have warned us, director wray, that russia is, quote, adapting and upping their game, end quote, and have described russias efforts to meddle in the 2018 midterm elections as a quote dress rehearsal for the big show in 2020, end quote. You have also stated that quote enormous strides, end quote, have been made since 2016 to protect our elections. I ask you to give us a frank assessment today of how prepared we are, in particular at state and local level to identify and address foreign interference in the 2020 election, and moreover, what needs to be done. Threats to the nation from terrorists, from criminals and from Foreign Governments seeking to steal our seek rest and undermine our elections and floc democracy are very real. Every day, addressing the threats, helping americans be safe. The fbi is not a corrupt institution or the deep state. It is not acting against the president for political purposes. So we need to come together in bipartisan fashion to support you and this institution, even as we conduct important oversight. I am very proud to be supportive of your organization and its mission. I thank you for your leadership. I know it is tough. We look forward to hearing your testimony. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Before i turn it over to the director, quick comment on senator feinsteins Opening Statement. The committee will be looking at the Counter Intelligence investigation of the Trump Campaign, we will call papadopoulos and find out what happened. Well wait on mr. Horowitz to do his report about the fisa warrant abuse, but well take a deep dive into the surveillance by the fbi and other organization campaigns, make sure we know what theyre doing and protocols are in place Going Forward to ensure we dont play politics with the law. Mr. Wray . Thank you, mr. Chairman. Ranking member feinstein, members of the committee. Wait a minute, i apologize. I need to swear you in. [ witness sworn ] thank you, mr. Chairman, Ranking Member feinstein and members of the committee for the chance to appear before you today. I originally intended to start with a few comments from my statement for the record which talks about some of the extraordinary work being done by men and women of the fbi and some threats we face. I want to do Something Different and talk about an issue thats particularly near and dear to me and that i think frankly doesnt get the attention it deserves, before i turn to many important questions of the committee. As you say, senator feinstein, i have been in the job just under two years. One of the toughest things about this job is the loss of a Law Enforcement officer. Certainly at the fbi weve experienced our share of loss, but the success of the fbi also depends greatly on the support of our dedicated state and local Law Enforcement partners who patrol our neighborhoods, protect our streets across america. I see that much more clearly now after having visited all 56 of the fbis field offices, having spoken directly with local Law Enforcement heads from every one of your states. Our state and local partners serve on the fbis joint terrorism taskforces all across the country, force multipliers in the fight against Drug Trafficking, taking down gangs, in saving kids who have been kidnapped and countless other efforts that help keep americans safe. They also give the fbi a much clearer understanding of the threats across the different communities in your states and ideas how to better combat them together. Every time i attend an fbi graduation for new agents or new analysts at quantico, a significant number of those graduates are former state and local officers. And i have the privilege of shaking their hands, presenting them with credentials, and welcoming them to the fbi family. So a line of duty death is personal to the fbi, is personal to me as director. I have a feeling it is personal to a number of you. Since i became director, shortly thereafter i asked the team to let me know every time an officer is shot and killed in the line of duty in this country. Every time it happens, i ask for a picture of the officer and i read about his or her family and about how long they served. Then i pick up the phone and call the chief or the sheriff or the commissioner and on behalf of the entire fbi extend my support and condolences. And i will tell you i made an awful lot of those calls to Heartbroken Police departments, way, way too many. Just last month, for example, i was overseas meeting with foreign counter parts and found myself making five of those calls in nine days back to the United States. Thats five lost protecters of communities, five grieving families, and colleagues, all in a matter of days. One of the calls i made was to the Sacramento Police department, the home of you and senator harris. Just a few weeks ago june 19th, an officer was killed responding to a domestic disturbance. She was 26 years old and only on the job about six months. Another call i made literally only a day later was to the home state of senator cornyn and senator cruz, a corporal from Mission Police department was killed trying to catch a guy who threatened his family with a gun and fled on foot. The corporal was 44 years old, had a wife and two kids. These calls never get any easier and just under two years as director, i already had to make condolence calls like that to more than half the states represented on this committee. And ive had to speak to some chiefs and sheriffs more than once. Ill never forget, for example, last september when i called brook haven, mississippi Police Department after two of their men were killed. To put it in context, they had an entire police force of 38 people. Unfortunately we had two more officers shot and killed in the line of duty this month, one an officer killed in arkansas this past thursday. So ive mentioned only a few specific tragic incidents, but i cannot stress enough this is a problem that effects cities and towns big and small all over the country. It can happen anywhere, anytime and the level of violence against Law Enforcement in this country doesnt get a lot of national coverage, and i worry often that americans dont realize the extent of the problem. Thats maybe understandable because they dont see what i see in my job, the devastating loss in each one of these instances to loved ones left behind and loss to the fbi and to our communities, our partners, who as i say are so critical to our mission. Finally, i want folks to remember that the dangers of this work go beyond just encounters with potentially deadly criminals. Think of line of duty deaths and illnesses that were seeing now from the 9 11 first responders. I know that as director i have spoken to not one, not two, but three of our own agents that died as a result of their work in response to those attacks, and there are countless other kinds of examples. I know our country faces a daunting list of challenges, im confident well be discussing any number of them together at the hearing, but i do want to make sure folks around the country are not for gettigeting work of the good people on the line. It takes an incredibly special person to put his or her life on the line for a complete stranger. And to get up every morning, day after day after day to do that i think is extraordinary. S so i think we owe it to them and their fallen comrades to do whatever we can to promote respect for their roles and all of us as americans owe them a profound debt of gratitude. I appreciate the committee extending me the privilege and honor as fbi director to honor their sacrifice in this job. Id be happy to answer the committees questions. Thank you, director. Thats a good sobering reminder what it is like to get up every day and be a police officer, dont know if youre coming home, dont know if the last time you say goodbye to your spouse or children is the last time you see them. Every time somebody falls, you give them appropriate honor, a lot of people fall in line of duty and go unnoticed until now. Well done. Lets talk about foreign and domestic threats. Thats what were all really about at the fbi. Do you have agents in afghanistan . We do have a few, yes. From your point of view, is the terrorist threats in afghanistan, have they been extinguished to the home land, are the threats alive and well in afghanistan to the American Home land . We are concerned about developments in afghanistan and potential ramifications for americans both around the world and here at home. For the committee, more al qaeda folks than before 9 11. Isis k is one of the more legal off shuts of isis and theyre in afghanistan as we speak. Sequestration. If sequestration goes back into effect, how would it effect your ability to operate . I would use the word devastating. You and i know each other well enough to know i dont tend to use a lot of hyperbole. We at the fbi in a way thats different from some of our other agencies around the government, an awful lot of that money goes straight to personnel costs, our ability to keep people safe would most definitely be severely hampered. Devastating is an accurate description. Section 215. Your authorities about to expire. Can you tell us about that . So under the usa freedom act, there are three provisions that are particularly relevant to the fbi set to expire if we dont collectively act here. The first, perhaps most widely used is the Business Records provision which we use routinely, almost every day, under Court Supervision to collect all kinds of Business Records, many of which would not be available under National Security letters, for example. So thats something that we use all the time in our National Security work. You lost that authority, how would that effect your ability to operate . It would effect Counterterrorism Mission profoundly. It would effect Counter Intelligence mission profoundly, and Cyber Mission profoundly. A couple other authorities, so youre hoping for reauthorization, is that your request to the committee . Certainly these are indispensable tools and i think we would look forward to working with congress to make sure we dont lose the ability to use these tools to keep americans safe. Theyre all Court Supervised and subject to extensive oversight. I mentioned in Opening Statement that 2020 election. Do you have what you need to provide Election Security from your lane, from congress, do you have the money and Statutory Authority you need . Well, from our lane at the fbi, our focus is the malign foreign influence piece. Theres a separate infrastructure election piece that dhs deals with the states more. We feel we have significant resources devoted to foreign influence piece and the president s budget thats currently before the Congress Asks for Additional Resources to help us do that. Is there any law we need to change that would help you . You dont have to answer now, get back with me. We can use more tools in the tool box, at this point i cant think of one on foreign influence. Get back with me. What are the chinese up to when it comes to Counter Intelligence operations and bad things . Mr. Chairman, i would say theres no country that poses a more severe counterintelligence threat to the country now than china. Thats saying a lot. That is saying a lot. And i dont say it lightly. Who would be second . Probably russia. Whats the difference between first and second . So china is fighting a generational fight here. When i say china, i want to be clear, this is not about the Chinese People as a whole, certainly not about Chinese Americans in this country. What it is about, though, is about a country that is in a variety of ways through the Chinese Government and Chinese Communist party using not just government foigtsds but private sector entities, nontraditional collectors, et cetera, to steal their way up the economic ladder at our expense. We have as we speak probably about a thousand plus investigations, all across the country, involving attempted theft of u. S. Intellectual property, whether it is economic espionage, counter proliferation, almost all leading back to china. So it is a threat thats deep and diverse and wide and vexing, whether it is in terms of the kinds of actors that are used, the kinds of techniques used, the kind of targets that are used, and so were working extremely hard with all our partners to combat it. But make no mistake, this is a high, high priority for all of us. Are the russians still trying to interfere in the election system . The russians are absolutely intent on trying to interfere with our elections through foreign influence. Everything we have done against russia has not deterred them enough, all of the sanctions, all of the talk, theyre still at it. My view is until they stop, they havent been deterred enough. And theyre still doing it . Yes. So some of us are concerned about the 2016 election in terms of bias. Do you trust mr. Horowitz to be fair