FBI Director Christopher Wray is prepared to refute the unverified memo written by Rep. Devin Nunes that alleges misconduct on the part of the FBI and the Department of Justice.

President Donald Trump has stated that he is prepared to release the memo, despite claims from both sides of the aisle in Congress that it omits crucial details and distorts key facts.

Wray has previously butted heads with Trump on issues relating to the FBI.



FBI Director Christopher Wray says he is ready to issue a rebuttal to the controversial memo authored by Rep. Devin Nunes once it is cleared for release by President Donald Trump, according to a former homeland security adviser.

"I think we have to remember the Nunes memo is an advocacy piece. It's not a fact piece. This is Chairman Nunes' summary of what he believes the abuses are. For that reason, it's one-sided," Fran Townsend, a homeland security adviser to former President George W. Bush, told CBS News.

The Nunes memo, which alleges misconduct on the part of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the FBI with regard to surveilling former members of President Donald Trump's campaign staff, was approved for release through a party line vote in the House Intelligence Committee earlier this week, and Trump is likely to clear it for public disclosure in the coming days.

The FBI issued a rare public statement on the memo through their website on Wednesday.

"With regard to the House Intelligence Committee’s memorandum, the FBI was provided a limited opportunity to review this memo the day before the committee voted to release it," the statement read. "As expressed during our initial review, we have grave concerns about material omissions of fact that fundamentally impact the memo’s accuracy."

Wray had previously stated that he was opposed to the public release of a classified memo, Bloomberg reported. Wray had frequently butted heads with Trump, and threatened to resign when the president requested that he fire FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. McCabe eventually resigned of his own accord after numerous attacks from the White House earlier this week.

The memo's release has drawn condemnation from the FBI, DOJ, Democrats, as well as some Republicans like Sen. John Thune.

"I think they have to take into consideration what the FBI is saying," Thune said, referring to Republicans in the House. "I think they need to pay careful attention to what our folks who protect us have to say about how this bears on our national security."

Trump has reportedly read the memo, and has stated that he is prepared to release it as early as Thursday.