The Justice Department on Wednesday began its search to find someone to temporarily lead the FBI while the Trump administration weighs a permanent replacement for recently ousted FBI Director James Comey.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions Jefferson (Jeff) Beauregard SessionsTrump's policies on refugees are as simple as ABCs Ocasio-Cortez, Velázquez call for convention to decide Puerto Rico status White House officials voted by show of hands on 2018 family separations: report MORE interviewed four candidates to serve as the agency's interim director, Justice Department officials told BuzzFeed News.

Among those being considered, three are from within the FBI: Michael Anderson, special agent in charge of the bureau's Chicago division; Paul Abbate, executive assistant director for the FBI's Criminal, Cyber, Response and Services Branch; and Adam Lee, who oversees the agency's Richmond field office.

The other candidate interviewed Wednesday, according to BuzzFeed, was William Evanina, the director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center — part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

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Andrew McCabe, the FBI's deputy director who is currently serving as acting director, is also in the running for the interim director post.

President Trump abruptly fired Comey from the top law enforcement post on Tuesday, shocking FBI employees and spurring a wave of backlash among Democrats and some Republicans, who questioned the timing and justification for the ouster.

The White House on Wednesday defended the president's decision, saying he acted on the recommendation of Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and had lost confidence in Comey's ability to lead the agency.

In a letter released Tuesday night, Rosenstein argued that Comey's handling of his agency's investigation into Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonBarr criticizes DOJ in speech declaring all agency power 'is invested in the attorney general' Virginia Democrat blasts Trump's 'appalling' remark about COVID-19 deaths in 'blue states' The Hill's Campaign Report: Biden asks if public can trust vaccine from Trump ahead of Election Day | Oklahoma health officials raised red flags before Trump rally MORE's use of a private email server was unprofessional and that he had sidestepped Justice Department protocol last year by recommending against prosecuting the Democratic presidential candidate.

The firing represents a sharp about face for the Trump administration. Comey, an Obama appointee, was asked to stay at the FBI by Trump shortly after he took office. And just last week, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said that Trump remained confident in Comey's leadership at the bureau.