Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) has told President Donald Trump that he supports appointing Judge Merrick Garland to replace fired FBI Director James Comey.
According to an NPR reporter's sources, however, Garland is not interested in the job.
McConnell said during a Tuesday appearance on Bloomberg TV that he told the president that Garland would be a fitting nominee for FBI director, the Hill reports.
"It may surprise people, but he has a deep background in criminal law, he was the prosecutor in the Oklahoma City bombing case, and I think it would make it clear that President Trump will continue the tradition at the FBI of having an apolitical professional," McConnell said.
The majority leader also saw Garland as a potentially bipartisan pick.
"I think if he picks someone with a deep background in law enforcement, who has no history of political involvement, a genuine expert–and the reason I mention Garland is he's an example of that–it will serve him well, serve the country well, and lead to a more bipartisan approach," he explained.
McConnell's support joined that of Sen. Mike Lee (R., Utah), who voiced his support for Garland last week in the immediate aftermath of the Comey firing.
Although prominent Senate conservatives have now backed Garland, such a nomination could be met with skepticism from Senate Democrats. Opposition may come because Garland would be trading a lifetime appointment to the District of Columbia's U.S. Court of Appeals for a ten-year term that he could be fired from at any time.
Some critics may find it odd for McConnell to be backing Garland, as McConnell led the Senate GOP's successful filibuster of Garland's nomination to the Supreme Court by former President Barack Obama.
Nonetheless, Garland and McConnell's complicated past may be irrelevant: Garland does not want the job, according to NPR correspondent Carrie Johnson. NPR reporter Susan Davis tweeted that sources told Johnson that Garland "intends to remain on the bench."
Sources tell NPR's @johnson_carrie that Judge Merrick Garland intends to remain on the bench. cc: @SenateMajLdr @SenMikeLee
— Susan Davis (@DaviSusan) May 16, 2017
Brookings Institute Fellow and Lawfare Editor in Chief Benjamin Wittes said this was not a surprise, as Garland has declined the position before. In a series of tweets, Wittes explained that "before Comey was appointed, Eric Holder sounded out Merrick Garland for the job of FBI Director." Garland had declined, saying that "he loved his job as a judge and didn't want to give it up."
Before Comey was appointed, Eric Holder sounded out Merrick Garland for the job of FBI Director. Garland told him he loved his job ... 1/3
— Benjamin Wittes (@benjaminwittes) May 16, 2017
... as a judge and didn't want to give it up. That is why he is not FBI Director today. Those who know Garland well would be stunned ... 2/3
— Benjamin Wittes (@benjaminwittes) May 16, 2017
...if the answer to the question of whether he wants to give up his job as a judge to run the FBI were different today. I sure would be. 3/3
— Benjamin Wittes (@benjaminwittes) May 16, 2017