Jan. 29 (UPI) -- Andrew McCab is "stepping aside" as the FBI's deputy director after being publicly criticized by President Donald Trumo, media outlets reported.
McCabe, 49, will remain on the payroll until he can retire with full benefits in mid-March, sources told NBC News. CNN also confirmed from a source McCabe told staff about his plans.
In May, McCabe became Trump's acting FBI director when Trump fired James Comey.
Comey acknowledged McCabe's decision via Twitter on Monday night.
"Special Agent Andrew McCabe stood tall over the last 8 months, when small people were trying to tear down an institution we all depend on," the former FBI Director wrote. "He served with distinction for two decades. I wish Andy well."
At the White House, Trump didn't answer a reporter's question about McCabe's departure.
Last December, Trump posted on Twitter that McCabe was "racing the clock to retire with full benefits."
The Washington Post earlier this month reported that after Trump had fired Comey, asked him whom he voted for in the 2016 election during an a meeting in the Oval Office. McCabe told the president he didn't vote.
Officials told The Post he was upset that his wife, Jill, a Democrat, received $675,000 in donations from a political action committee controlled by a close friend of Hillary Clinton and the state Democratic Party in her failed 2015 Virginia state Senate bid
Also, Trump and some Republicans have cited his role at the FBI during investigations related -- the Clinton email probe and the investigation into Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election and whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Kremlin.
McCabe, an attorney, jointed the FBI in 1996, including serving under Robert Mueller, who was appointed special counsel investigating Russian's interference. Comey appointed him deputy director in 2016.
