Kash Patel files $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic

FBI Director Kash Patel, filed a defamation lawsuit Monday against The Atlantic and its journalist Sarah Fitzpatrick, demanding $250 million in damages.

The complaint, filed in federal court in the District of Columbia, calls the article published Friday by the magazine a "sweeping, malicious, and defamatory hit piece" filled with "false and obviously fabricated" accusations aimed at destroying Patel's reputation and forcing his departure from office.

According to the lawsuit, the report in The Atlantic claimed that the FBI director would be at risk of losing his post due to alleged "excessive drinking" and "unexplained absences." Patel categorically rejects these claims.

"Defendants are of course free to criticize the leadership of the FBI," the complaint states, "but they crossed the legal line by publishing an article replete with false and obviously fabricated allegations designed to destroy Director Patel’s reputation and drive him from office."

The crux of the lawsuit: Anonymous sources and prior warnings

The complaint criticizes the journalist's exclusive use of anonymous sources. "Fitzpatrick could not get a single person to go on the record in defense of these outrageous allegations, instead relying entirely on anonymous sources she knew to be both highly partisan with an ax to grind and also not in a position to know the facts," the document states.

In addition, Patel's lawyers claim that the magazine was warned hours before publication that the central allegations were "categorically false," which the lawsuit claims would show they acted with "actual malice."

The Atlantic responded quickly to the announcement of the complaint. In a statement issued Monday, the magazine defended its work: "We stand by our reporting on Kash Patel, and we will vigorously defend The Atlantic and our journalists against this meritless lawsuit."