Trump wants to nominate new FBI director before the end of next week as the first candidates to replace Comey are interviewed

• e-mail

President Donald Trump said Saturday that he hopes to nominate a new FBI director by next week.

Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he wants to move quickly to choose a nominee to replace James Comey, who he fired Tuesday. 

He was on his way to Liberty University for his first commencement speech as president as the Department of Justice began interviewing candidates for the FBI director position.

Trump told reporters that he may be able to make his decision on the FBI director before he leaves for his first foreign trip later next week. 

'Even that is possible,' he said.

Five of the candidates will be interviewed Saturday, including Adam Lee, who was not originally believed to be on the list. 

Lee, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Richmond, Virginia, office, was at the Justice Department around 1pm Saturday, according to ABC News. The outlet also reported that Alice Fisher was the first candidate, interviewed before him. 

Scroll down for video 

President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he hopes to nominate a new FBI director before the end of next week

Trump was on his way to Liberty University to give his first commencement speech as president

The President, pictured aboard Air Force One, said he wants to move quickly to choose a nominee to replace Comey, who he fired this week

He said he wants to have a nominee chosen before he leaves for his first trip abroad as president

The timeline for confirmation of the new FBI director is unclear, but should happen 'quickly', a source told Fox News.

'We are moving quickly and expeditiously to pick an interim and a permanent replacement, and we’re doing our due diligence - we’re not going to cut any corners,' said the source.

The original list of candidates reported by the outlet only had 11, but Lee's interview Saturday brings the list up to 12. 

The five meeting this weekend will talk with Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his deputy Rod Rosenstein. 

Lee, who had the second reported meeting with the Department of Justice Saturday, was appointed by Comey to the head of the Richmond office in 2014. 

He was previously the chief of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section and led the global Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and Antitrust Programs at FBI headquarters.

Former US Attorney Michael Garcia is pictured at the Department of Justice Saturday for his interview with Sessions

Adam Lee, pictured, met with Jeff Sessions as a candidate for the position of FBI director. He is pictured leaving the Department of Justice Saturday

Lawyer Alice Fisher is pictured as she arrived at the Department of Justice Saturday for her meeting with Jeff Sessions

Fisher, left, was the first of 12 current candidates to be interviewed for the FBI director position and Lee, right, was the second

Garcia, pictured, was the third candidate to be interviewed by Sessions Saturday

Comey is pictured leaving his home on Saturday while interviews for the new FBI director candidate take place at the Justice Department. Trump has said he wants to quickly replace the former agency head

The only woman on the list of candidates, Alice Fisher, was a deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Criminal Division under George W. Bush.  

Bush appointed her in a 'recess appointment' over objections from Democrats due to the belief that she may have supported torture techniques at Guantanamo Bay, according to the Associated Press.

She testified in favor of Neil Gorsuch at his Supreme Court Justice confirmation hearing and currently works at Latham & Watkins law firm in Washington DC where she is managing partner. If she gets the nod, she will be the first female FBI Director.

Meeting this weekend: (left to right) Lawyer Alice Fisher and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn

Also up: (left to right) Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe and New York Court of Appeals Associate Judge Michael J. Garcia

Fired on May 9 by Trump, FBI Director James Comey is set to be replaced 'quickly' according to a White House source

Trump caused a storm of controversy by firing Comey, who was in charge of the investigation into Russia's influence on the election

Also headed to the DOJ this weekend is John Cornyn, the Senate Majority Whip and sits on the Senate Intelligence Committee. 

He recently cancelled a speech at Texas Southern University in Houston over fierce opposition from students who objected to his votes to approve Attorney General Jeff Sessions and DeVos, his vote for a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, and his vote against federal funds for sanctuary cities, reported CNN.

Meeting with Sessions will also be Andrew McCabe, who was Comey's number two and is currently Acting FBI Director. He joined the agency in 1996 and started in the New York office.

In the wings: (left to right) Former NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly and former House Intelligence Committee chairman Mike Rogers

(Left to right) Executive assistant director for the Criminal, Cyber, Response and Services branch of the FBI and House Intelligence Committee member Rep. Trey Gowdy

CBS News reports that McCabe's chances of becoming permanent director are slim because his wife, Jill McCabe, who was running for a seat on the Virginia State Senate, received $500,000 in campaign donations in 2015 from Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, a close ally to the Clintons. Critics have said he should have recused himself from the email investigation.

The last of the five is Judge Michael J. Garcia of the New York Court of Appeals, appointed by Andrew Cuomo, and who previously served as Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York.

He previously was Vice President of the Americas for INTERPOL, the international police organization, from 2003 to 2006. From 2012 to 2014, he was Chair of the Investigatory Chamber of the Ethics Committee of the Federation Internationale de Football Association, according to his bio on the court's website. 

Of the remaining seven on the short list, the most well-known is former New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, whose name has been bandied about for FBI Director in the past.

Kelly spent five decades in the NYPD, was the longest-serving NYC Police Commissioner, was in charge of investigating the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, was the Director of Police under the United Nations mission in Haiti, and served the Bill Clinton administration as Treasury Department Undersecretary for Enforcement. 

He was a candidate for secretary of Homeland Security during President Obama’s first term, and later to head up the FBI in 2011 when Director Robert Mueller stepped down. 

The next most well-known name on the list is probably Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama, a former House Intelligence Committee chairman. Rogers worked as an FBI agent in the 1990s.

He is also an ex-Michigan four-term congressman who led the House Intelligence Committee but retired from the House in 2015.

He led Trump's national security transition team until he was ousted, reportedly because he came in with Gov. Chris Christie, who was also ousted, reported NBC News. He is considered a 'hard-line conservative.'

(Left to right) Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers and VP of Boeing Michael Luttig

Also on the short list: Atlanta attorney and former deputy attorney general under President George W. Bush, Larry Thompson

Candidate Rep. Trey Gowdy of South Carolina led the congressional probe into Hillary Clinton's actions surrounding Benghazi. He was also critical of Comey's decision not to prosecute Clinton in the email server investigation, according to The State.

FBI veteran Paul Abbate is the executive assistant director for the Criminal, Cyber, Response and Services branch of the FBI. He began his career with the agency in 1996 and worked in New York City as part of the SWAT team, according to theFBI.

He also served in various positions in the FBI in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Newark, Los Angeles, and Detroit. 

An unusual pick is Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers, who is a past prosecutor, state prisons chief and attorney general, according to The Gazette. He is in his first term as mayor of his hometown, but came highly recommended with GOP circles.

'John Suthers is nonpolitical when it comes to carrying out the laws of the United States and doing what is right,' Former Gov. Bill Owens said. 'He'd always do the right thing - by the book and enforce the law.'

Another interesting pick is Michael Luttig former federal appellate court judge appointed by President George Bush who is the current executive vice president of Boeing.

Interesting because Trump until very recently had a contentious relationship with Boeing.

'Boeing is building a brand new 747 Air Force One for future presidents, but costs are out of control, more than $4 billion. Cancel order!' he tweeted in December.

But since then, the president has developed a close relationship with the company's CEO Dennis Muilenburg, meeting with him three times, according to CNN.

Also on the list is Larry Thompson, an Atlanta attorney with Finch McCranie law firm who is said to be very close to Jeff Sessions, is a former deputy attorney general under President George W. Bush.

If he's picked he will be the first African-American director of the FBI.