Trump taps staunch backer and 'deep state' foe Kash Patel for FBI director

WASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday tapped former Republican House staffer and staunch supporter Kashyap “Kash” Patel as his next FBI director, signaling his intention to fire the current FBI director, Christopher Wray, once he takes office in January.

Patel, a former federal prosecutor, has long been seen as one of Trump’s top picks for a prominent national security role after serving in various high-ranking staff positions in U.S. defense and intelligence agencies during Trump's first term."Kash is a brilliant lawyer, investigator, and "America First" fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending Justice, and protecting the American People," Trump said in a Saturday evening post on his Truth Social platform. "He played a pivotal role in uncovering the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, standing as an advocate for truth, accountability, and the Constitution."

Trump also praised Patel for doing an "incredible job" during his first term, where he served as chief of staff at the Department of Defense, deputy director of National Intelligence and senior director for Counterterrorism at the National Security Council.

"Kash has also tried over 60 jury trials" while at the Justice Department, Trump said. "This FBI will end the growing crime epidemic in America, dismantle the migrant criminal gangs, and stop the evil scourge of human and drug trafficking across the Border."

Patel was not immediately available for comment.

In a statement released after Trump's announcement, the FBI said: "Every day, the men and women of the FBI continue to work to protect Americans from a growing array of threats. Director Wray's focus remains on the men and women of the FBI, the people we do the work with, and the people we do the work for."

A longtime national security official -- and critic

A lawyer and former Justice Department trial attorney, Patel rose to prominence as a senior committee aide to Republican House Intelligence Committee Chair Devin Nunes of California.

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Since Trump left office in January 2021, Patel has frequently posted on social media and made public appearances to support Trump and his agenda, especially in opposing and destroying what both have called the “deep state,” or longtime members of the national security bureaucracy.

“We’ve got to put in all American patriots top to bottom,” Patel told another Trump surrogate, Steve Bannon in one recent post-election interview. He said he and Trump administration leaders “will go out and find the conspirators not just in government but in the media” deemed disloyal to Trump.

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Such views have led to speculation that Patel could face opposition during the Senate confirmation process that is required for some very top U.S. national security positions, including the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Trump is trying to avoid that by pushing supporters in Congress to allow him to make recess appointments that circumvent confirmation.

Trump appointed Wray in 2017 after firing then-FBI Director James Comey. Normally FBI directors serve a 10-year term to insulate them from political pressure. If Trump fires Wray, he will be the first president ever to fire two FBI directors.

'Hard to imagine a single more threatening and adversarial figure'

Trump soured on Wray soon after tapping him for the key federal law enforcement role, multiple sources – including Trump himself – have said. In September 2020, Trump told former New Jersey governor Chris Christie that Wray was the "worst member" of his administration and blamed Christie for recommending Wray for the role, Christie said in 2021.

Wray further infuriated Trump in 2022 for his role in overseeing the FBI search of his Mar-a-Lago estate in an effort to find and retrieve classified documents that Trump had taken with him from the White House.

Trump’s announcement Saturday that he would replace Wray with Patel drew immediate praise from his followers. Michael Flynn, a retired Army lieutenant general and Trump's first White House national security advisor, described Patel as “America’s choice as Director of the FBI” in a post on X.

“Accountability is coming,” Flynn wrote.

Some legal experts and former Justice Department officials criticized Trump's choice of Patel, saying the president-elect is is appointing people to help him tear down the institutions they are supposed to oversee.

Harry Litman, a former U.S. Attorney and deputy assistant Attorney General, described Patel on X as a “firebrand FBI hater” who is as bad a choice for FBI director as Trump’s first pick for Attorney General would have been for the Justice Department. That pick, former Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, withdrew from consideration amid allegations of sexual misconduct, which Gaetz denies.

“He is the analogue to Gaetz,” Litman said of Patel. “Hard to imagine a single more threatening and adversarial figure for the FBI in the entire country.”

Josh Meyer is USA Today's Domestic Security Correspondent. Email him at [email protected] and follow him at @JoshMeyerDC on X.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump taps loyal supporter Kash Patel to run FBI