May 19, 2017
President Donald Trump's leading pick for FBI director is good enough for U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey.
Toomey tweeted on Thursday evening that Joe Lieberman, who is among a few candidates being considered for the position, is a "great choice."
Joe Lieberman would be a great choice to lead the FBI.
— Senator Pat Toomey (@SenToomey) May 18, 2017
The president said that he is "very close" to finding a replacement after firing FBI Director James Comey more than a week ago.
On Thursday, Trump touted Lieberman, a longtime Democratic senator from Connecticut and Al Gore's vice presidential nominee during the 2000 presidential election, as his top choice.
Lieberman also tried his hand at gaining the 2004 Democratic nomination for president, losing to John Kerry.
He endorsed John McCain for president during the 2008 Republican National Convention and was listed in Senate records as an "Independent Democrat" as of 2007.
Some, especially Democrats, aren't so on board with Trump's pick given his lack of experience in federal law enforcement.
"I think that the political part of this is not the best part for the FBI," Dianne Feinstein, a Democratic senator from California told CNN. "The FBI has to have someone that every member of that agency respect because they know their law enforcement, they know they're not going to cave to political whims, and they know that they're talented in doing the law enforcement job."
Toomey said last week that Judge Merrick Garland, a Democrat, would make a fine replacement.
The Pennsylvania senator, who faced criticism earlier this year for never having held an in-person town hall meeting in Philadelphia, said the timing of Trump's decision to fire Comey was "unfortunate."
Comey was leading an investigation into Trump's campaign ties with Russia.
The Department of Justice has since appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller as special counsel to head the Russia investigation.
