James Comey was appointed director of the FBI by President Barack Obama and continued to serve until he was abruptly fired by President Donald Trump while overseeing investigations into the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia during the 2016 presidential election. Comey was also heavily criticized for his public statements about an investigation into Democratic candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s email use so close to the 2016 election, which could have affected its outcome. Comey previously served as a U.S. attorney and deputy attorney general during the George W. Bush administration.