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Last Friday, Kash Patel was sworn into office after the U.S. Senate narrowly confirmed him to be the next Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Patel is among President Donald Trump’s most controversial appointments, having faced sharp criticism from both Democrats and former Trump allies since his nomination.
When Patel’s nomination was first announced, Trump’s former national security advisor John Bolton compared Patel to the leader of Joseph Stalin’s secret police in the Soviet Union.
Trump had previously attempted to appoint Patel as deputy FBI director in the twilight of his first term in office, but then-Attorney General William Barr told the White House that Patel would become deputy director “over [his] dead body.”
Other critics have framed Patel’s appointment as an attempt by the Trump administration to weaponize the FBI against the president’s political opponents.
“The irony of this is that they all complained about the politicization of the FBI, and here Trump is putting in someone who’s going to do just that,” Charles Kupperman, Trump’s former deputy national security advisor, said of Patel’s nomination. “These are not reforms, they are punitive measures from a guy trying to be the enforcer for Trump.”
Patel has previously advocated for firing the “top ranks of the FBI,” encouraging Congress to demand testimony exposing “every single bit of filth and corruption” at the agency, and withholding the bureau’s funding “until the documents come in.” He has also voiced support for prosecuting leakers and journalists and replacing national security workers with “people who won’t undermine the president’s agenda.”
“Patel’s confirmation makes a conspiracy theorist and Donald Trump loyalist the federal government’s top crime-fighter,” wrote MSNBC’s Ja’han Jones last week. “Patel has issued public threats to go after Trump’s perceived political enemies, including publishing a list of members of the so-called deep state he’d investigate if given power. He has also openly promoted the QAnon conspiracy theory and shown support for the violent insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol to overturn the 2020 election on Jan. 6, 2021.”
Despite the apparent bipartisan concern over Patel’s nomination, Senate Republicans overwhelmingly supported his confirmation, with 51 of 53 GOP Senators voting to approve the appointment. Following his confirmation, U.S. Sens. Katie Britt, R-Ala., and Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., sent a letter to Patel, congratulating him on his new position.
“Congratulations on being confirmed as the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” the senators wrote. “We are grateful for your willingness to serve our country. Your commitment to end political weaponization by law enforcement is essential to restoring public trust in the FBI.”
Britt and Tuberville then took the opportunity to ask Patel to use his authority as FBI Director to assign additional personnel to the Redstone Arsenal, a U.S. Army base in Huntsville which also houses a multitude of other government agencies, including thousands of FBI employees.
“We are proud to represent the great state of Alabama, home to Redstone Arsenal which is the epicenter of the FBI’s technological capabilities and advanced training,” the senators continued. “As threats to our nation become more sophisticated, FBI-Redstone Arsenal’s operations will need to continue growing. The North Campus is well prepared to support this mission by delivering state-of-the-art training to address cyber threats, emerging technologies, and the Field Offices’ investigative efforts. The South Campus is currently under construction and will host even more capacity to address current and future threats.”
Specifically, the senators requested that Patel assign an additional 1,000 FBI employees to Redstone “as a first step to ultimately filling the approximately 4,000 open slots the campus can accommodate.” In doing so, the senators claimed that Patel would be sending a message to the United States’ adversaries “that the FBI’s leadership is back to prioritizing the pressing threats to our homeland.”
“We look forward to working closely with you to Make America Safe Again. Thank you for your consideration and your service to our country,” the senators concluded.
