Former President George W. Bush’s homeland security adviser says the Trump administration approached her about replacing former FBI Director James Comey.
“I’ve talked to folks in the administration about it,” Fran Townsend said in a Politico interview published Wednesday.
“You know what? I learned in the White House I don’t do hypotheticals,” she added when asked if she would take the role. “But I will say I was quite honored and quite flattered to be approached.”
Townsend added that her candidacy is “history-making” because a woman has never lead the FBI.
“The fact that women are in the mix says a lot about how far we’ve come,” she said. “That hasn’t been true before.
{mosads}“Regardless of whatever decision is made, we have begun to shatter a glass ceiling about what is the population of people who are qualified and competitive to hold such a position.”
A Washington ABC affiliate reported last week that former FBI official Richard McFeely had withdrawn his name from a shortlist to replace Comey.
McFeely’s withdrawal left former Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), former Republican Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating and acting FBI chief Andrew McCabe in the running.
Trump suggested last week that he would name a new bureau director before starting his first foreign trip last weekend.
Former Assistant Attorney General Alice Fisher, a Bush appointee, also removed herself from the White House’s shortlist last week.
Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) each ruled out replacing Comey earlier this month.