Donald Trump wasn’t expecting this news. Now he’s scrambling to fix things.
And the Senate blindsided Trump with a surprise he was fearing the most.
Senate Democrats Delay Kash Patel’s FBI Nomination Vote
The Senate Judiciary Committee postponed a crucial vote on Thursday regarding the nomination of Kash Patel to lead the FBI, pushing the decision to next week after Democrats exercised their procedural authority to delay the process.
Shortly after the committee convened, Democratic members moved to place a hold on Patel’s nomination. Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) acknowledged the move, stating, “the minority has exercised their right and my right under the committee rules to hold over the nomination of Kash Patel to lead the FBI.”
Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the ranking Democrat on the committee, emphasized the significance of the nomination, given its decade-long term. “This is an unusual nomination, and it’s a 10-year nomination,” Durbin remarked, explaining that the extended term was established “to make sure that we took politics out of the equation.”
Durbin further argued that such a long commitment “merits review” and raised concerns over Patel’s credibility, alleging that he had made a “direct contradiction under oath” regarding his role in producing a song recording in support of individuals jailed for their involvement in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. He also accused Patel of being “part of this lionization of these thugs who took over the Capitol.”
Last week during his confirmation hearing, Patel pledged to rebuild public confidence in law enforcement. He outlined ambitious goals, including reducing U.S. drug deaths, h*micides, and r*pes by half.
“Make sure we don’t have 100,000 r*pes in this country next year, make sure we don’t have 100,000 drug overdoses from Chinese fentanyl and Mexican heroin, and make sure we don’t have 17,000 h*micides,” Patel vowed.
However, Senate Democrats strongly opposed his nomination, arguing that his past statements and writings reflected extreme views unfit for the head of the FBI.
They cited Patel’s previous assertions that U.S. intelligence agencies required a complete overhaul, including firing top officials and prosecuting individuals accused of abusing authority for political purposes.
Patel also made waves with his 2023 book Government Gangsters, in which he outlined an enemies list he suggested should be pursued in a potential second Trump administration. “I read his book start to finish, and I can tell you he doesn’t have the temperament for the job,” Durbin stated.
In response to concerns about politicization, Patel reassured senators that he would not use FBI resources to target political opponents. He also pointed to past FBI missteps, particularly during the Trump-Russia investigation following the 2016 election.
Unlike some other Trump administration officials, such as White House budget director nominee Russ Vought, Patel did not advocate for the abolition of the FBI. Instead, he asserted that “98% of the FBI is courageous, apolitical warriors of justice” who simply need stronger leadership.
When pressed by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) about previous comments suggesting that FBI headquarters should be shut down and converted into a “Museum of the Deep State,” Patel rejected the characterization, calling it a result of “false accusations and grotesque mischaracterizations.”
He insisted that the ongoing scrutiny of his record was undermining the integrity of FBI personnel.
“The only thing this body is doing is defeating the credibility of the men and women at the FBI,” Patel contended. “I stood with them here in this country. In every theater of war we have, I was on the ground in service to this nation. And any accusations leveled against me that I would somehow put political bias before the Constitution are grotesquely unfair.”
Before his time in the Trump administration, Patel built a career in law, serving as a public defender in Florida for 12 years and later as a trial attorney for the Department of Justice from 2014 to 2017.
With his nomination now on hold, the Senate Judiciary Committee is set to revisit Patel’s confirmation next week. Donald Trump and his team are certainly hoping there’s no more roadblocks in his confirmation process.
Stay tuned to The Federalist Wire.
