President-elect Donald Trump has named Kashyap “Kash” Patel, a longtime ally and frequent harsh critic of the FBI, to be the new administration's next director.
Patel, 44, is a lawyer with national security, intelligence and counterterrorism experience who helped uncover the agency's surveillance of the Trump campaign and first term. He is a member of President Trump's transition team and advises the administration on other appointments.
President Trump announced Patel's appointment in a post on Truth Social on Saturday.
“Mr. Kash is a brilliant lawyer, investigator, and 'America First' fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, upholding justice, and protecting the American people,” Trump's statement said. It is written. “He played a pivotal role in debunking Russia, Russia, and Russian disinformation, and served as a champion of truth, accountability, and the Constitution.”
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Former US Secretary of Defense Kash Patel speaks at former President Donald Trump's campaign rally at the Findlay Toyota Center in Prescott Valley, Arizona, on October 13. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
Current FBI Director Christopher Wray is currently serving a 10-year term starting in 2017, but for Patel to take the post, he would have to be fired or resign.
Patel is widely seen as a staunch Trump supporter who will implement the reforms Trump wants within the agency. He served as the senior director of counterterrorism at the National Security Council during the first Trump administration, and then served as chief of staff to Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller from 2020 to 2021.
Mr Patel has been a fierce critic of bureaucracy and corruption. In 2023, Patel published a book called “Gangsters of Government: The Deep State, Truth, and the Fight for Democracy,'' which the book describes as “a look inside the permanent government bureaucracy.'' It was an in-depth look at the key players and tactics.
Media outlets labeled Patel a “highly controversial figure,” and MSNBC's Morning Joe called him “a symbol of MAGA anger at the Department of Justice and the FBI.”
“I would shut down the FBI Hoover Building on the first day and reopen it as a deep state museum the next day,” Patel said in an interview on “The Sean Ryan Show.”
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President Trump nominated Patel to head the new FBI. (Getty Images)
He attended the University of Richmond, earned a law degree from Pace University in New York, and earned a certificate in international law from University College London School of Law before beginning his career as a public defender in Miami-Dade County, Florida. I started it.
In 2014, Mr. Patel became a federal prosecutor in the Justice Department's National Security Division, where he led prosecutions against members of al-Qaeda, ISIS, and other terrorist organizations.
Patel has held several positions in the federal government, most recently as chief of staff at the Pentagon and deputy chief of staff during President Trump's first term. Prior to working for the Department of Defense, Patel served as the deputy director of the Department of Defense.
Served as Deputy Assistant to the President on the Intelligence Community and the National Security Council.
Prior to joining the first Trump administration, Mr. Patel served as national security advisor and senior advisor to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI).
It was reported to the committee chairman, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.). In that role, he helped oversee the House investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and uncovered illegal surveillance of the Trump campaign by the FBI and Justice Department.
The FBI director position requires Senate confirmation. On Saturday night's X-Post, Trump ally Mike Davis called Patel “undoubtedly qualified.”
Former Defense Department Chief of Staff Kash Patel greets a crowd during a campaign rally at Minden Tahoe Airport on October 2, 2022 in Minden, Nevada. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
“I served as chief nominating adviser to Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, a job that was responsible for the confirmation of FBI director,” Davis wrote. “Kash Patel will win Senate confirmation. He will bring much-needed reforms to the broken and corrupt FBI.”
President Trump's statement said Patel would work with attorney general nominee Pam Bondi on FBI reform.
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President Trump's post concluded: “This FBI will end America's growing crime epidemic, dismantle immigrant criminal organizations, and stop the evil scourge of cross-border human and drug trafficking.” . “Kash will work for our great Attorney General Pam Bondi and restore loyalty, courage, and integrity to the FBI.”
The FBI issued a statement following Trump's announcement.
“Every day, the men and women of the FBI continue to work to protect the American people from an ever-growing array of threats,” the statement said. “Director Wray remains focused on the men and women of the FBI, the people we work with, and the people we serve.”
