Joe Lieberman, the former senator from Connecticut and Al Gore's running mate in 2000, is President Trump's top choice to replace James Comey as FBI director, Trump said Thursday.
The president made the announcement during a gathering with television anchors at the White House, and later, while speaking to reporters during an appearance with President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia, Trump said, "We're very close to an FBI director." Lieberman originally ran as a Democrat and later became an independent, and several of his former Democratic colleagues told Politico they don't believe he should take on the position for a variety of reasons — as a former politician he doesn't have enough experience to lead the organization; he became more conservative toward the end of his Senate career; and he opposed part of former President Barack Obama's agenda while he was still in office. Lieberman is also senior counsel at Kasowitz, Benson, Torres, and Friedman, a law firm that has frequently represented Trump — and is apparently no longer touting that fact.