Freeh plans to stay as FBI director

By By Terry Frieden/CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- FBI Director Louis Freeh has been asked to stay by President-elect George W. Bush, sources close to Freeh said, and he intends to remain on the job for at least a few months while the administration develops its budget and policy initiatives. Freeh told his FBI colleagues he has "no plans at the present time" to leave his post, but FBI officials say he continues to keep his options open on resigning before his 10-year term expires in 2003.

Aides say that in a recent internal memo Freeh labeled press reports that he may soon be leaving as "rumors," and assured FBI agents in the weekly bureau communication that if he does decide to depart, "you'll be the first to know."

Freeh's statement was a reiteration of his public position that he has no plans for an early exit. But he has often discussed his desire to support his growing family. Freeh had four children--all boys--when he took the helm of the FBI in 1993, and now has six sons.

"He's keeping his options open, and if some offer too good to be true crosses his desk -- you never know," said one FBI official.

Sources close to Freeh told CNN he has been asked to stay on by President-elect George W. Bush, and that Freeh intends to remain in place for at least a few months while the administration develops its budget and policy initiatives.

Attorney General Janet Reno, in one of her final public appearances Thursday, heaped praise on Freeh and said she was aware of the incoming Bush administration's desire for him to stay in place.

"I know they're asking him to stay," Reno told reporters. "Whatever he does, I'll always be grateful to him for his willingness to serve."

Although Freeh's strained relationship with the Clinton White House has been well documented, the attorney general has publicly and privately supported Freeh's FBI tenure.

"I think the world of Louis Freeh," Reno told reporters at her weekly news briefing. "We've had discussions, disagreements and arguments. Some people equivocate about what they really think. Louis Freeh is a person I could count on to tell me exactly what he thought."

Their most highly publicized dispute stemmed from Reno's rejection of Freeh's recommendation that an independent counsel be named to investigate Democratic campaign fund-raising practices in the 1996 election cycle.