Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) on Wednesday called on FBI Director James Comey to resign over his recommendation not to press federal charges against Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonSenate panel subpoenas Roger Stone associate for Russia probe Webb: The new mob: Anti-American Dems Clinton to hold fundraiser for Menendez in NJ next month MORE for her use of a personal server while secretary of State.

The demand from Perry, who suggested Comey might have a political motivation for going soft on Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee, is a step across a line that no other prominent Republican has so far been willing to take.

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"For a man who prided himself on being a top law official in this country, I would suggest the man ought to resign," the two-time presidential candidate and "Dancing with the Stars" contestant said on Fox News.

"Comey has a lot of explaining to do, because those of us who understand what was going on here — the Clintons were clearly trying to hide this server," he said. "They did not want that information in, and for Comey to stand up and make excuses for Hillary is absolutely and totally unacceptable.

"I think [Comey] has some skin in the game here somewhere," Perry said. "To protect the Clintons at this particular juncture is an extraordinary failure on his part."

Comey is three years into a 10-year term as head of the FBI and is not scheduled to leave office until 2023.

Other prominent Republicans have notably refused to demand that Comey, who himself is a Republican, resign because of his recommendation in July that the Obama administration not file charges for Clinton's mishandling of classified information through her use of a personal email server. In an unprecedented public announcement, Comey claimed that Clinton and her aides had been "extremely careless" but did not show an intent to break the law.

Top Republican lawmakers have questioned the department's judgment and demanded that the bureau release an unclassified version of its case file, which could be public as soon as this week.