Kash Patel, FBI nominee, passes Senate Judiciary Committee
A staunch Trump supporter, Patel faced criticism from Democrats on the committee, who ultimately voted against his nomination.
Patel served in a variety of positions during the first Trump administration.
The Senate Judiciary Committee has moved forward with the nomination of Kash Patel to director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Donald Trump's nominee to lead the agency was approved by the panel with 12 Republican votes, while 10 Democratic members rejected the nomination.
Patel now faces a vote by the full Senate, following the successful confirmation of 15 of Trump's 22 nominees, including Marco Rubio for the State Department, Pam Bondi for Attorney General, and Kristi Noem for the Department of Homeland Security.
The hearing grew tense at times, with Democrats accusing Patel of lying in his statements and of seeking to carry out purges within the agency. In his defense, committee chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) stated, "The FBI has been infected by political bias and weaponized against the American people. Mr. Patel knows it, Mr. Patel exposed it, and Mr. Patel has been targeted for it."
Who is Kash Patel?
Patel, the son of Indian-Gujarati immigrants who fled ethnic repression in Uganda, has built a career focused on national security and criminal justice. He entered politics in 2017 as a senior adviser on counterterrorism to the House Intelligence Committee.
During the first Trump administration, Patel served as a senior adviser to Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell. In 2020, he was appointed chief of staff to Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller.
In 2022 he joined the board of directors of Trump Media & Technology Group, the company that owns Truth Social. In the last election cycle he actively campaigned for Trump.
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