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POTUS Needles Needles Kash Patel Over FBI Spotlight

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Kash Patel
Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

President Donald Trump publicly mocked FBI Director Kash Patel on Monday night as the bureau chief faced mounting scrutiny over allegations about his conduct and a heated Senate clash with Sen. Chris Van Hollen.

Trump delivered the jab during remarks in the White House Rose Garden while acknowledging members of his administration.

“Does he get enough publicity?” Trump cracked while mentioning Patel.

“If you could get a little more publicity, it would be very…” Trump continued before trailing off with a laugh.

The line landed after weeks of ugly headlines surrounding Patel, including allegations involving heavy drinking, unexplained absences, and late-night partying that reportedly frustrated staff and security personnel.

Patel has denied the allegations and responded aggressively to critics, including filing a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic after the magazine published claims about his conduct.

But the controversy exploded even further Tuesday afternoon when Patel appeared before the Senate Appropriations Committee and got into a blistering exchange with Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.

Van Hollen confronted Patel directly over reports alleging the FBI director had become so intoxicated on some occasions that staff struggled to wake him.

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“Director Patel, these reports about your conduct, including reports of your being so drunk and hungover that your staff had to force entry into your home, are extremely alarming,” Van Hollen said.

“When your private actions make it impossible for you to perform your public duties, we have a big problem,” the senator continued. “You cannot perform those public duties if you’re incapacitated.”

Van Hollen then pressed Patel over whether security personnel had ever struggled to locate or wake him.

“So, there have been no occasions when your security detail had difficulty waking or locating you?” Van Hollen asked.

“Nope, it’s a total force,” Patel shot back. “I don’t even know where you get this stuff, but it doesn’t make it credible, because you say so.”

“I’m not saying it,” Van Hollen replied, pointing to published reporting.

“You are literally saying it,” Patel fired back.

The exchange only grew more hostile from there. Van Hollen attempted to frame his questioning around Patel’s ability to carry out his responsibilities as FBI director.

“I really don’t care about your personal life, so long as you are able to perform your public and official responsibilities,” the senator said.

But Patel abruptly turned the hearing into a personal counterattack against the smug Democrat.

“The only person that was slinging margaritas in El Salvador on the taxpayer dollar with a convicted gang-banging rapist was you,” Patel said.

“The only individual in this room that has been drinking on taxpayers’ dime during the day is you.”

The remark referenced Van Hollen’s controversial trip to El Salvador earlier this year, where the senator met with deported migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

Abrego Garcia had been transferred to El Salvador’s high-security Terrorism Confinement Center over alleged ties to MS-13, though his attorneys denied any gang affiliation.

Photos from Van Hollen’s meeting with Abrego Garcia quickly spread online because the two appeared seated at a table with drinks in front of them.

The images drew ridicule from conservatives and even from El Salvador President Nayib Bukele.

“Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the ‘death camps’ & ‘torture,’ now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!” Bukele wrote at the time.

Van Hollen has repeatedly denied consuming alcohol during the meeting and accused Salvadoran officials of staging the optics.

“Nobody drank any margaritas or sugar water or whatever it is,” Van Hollen previously said.

But Patel revived the controversy in dramatic fashion during the Senate hearing.

Van Hollen immediately accused Patel of spreading falsehoods.

“The fact that you mentioned that indicates you don’t know what you are talking about,” the senator shot back.

He later accused Patel of promoting “urban legend in right wing media about margaritas in El Salvador.”

“And so coming from the mouth of an FBI director to make provably false statements in a hearing like this is extremely troubling,” Van Hollen said.

The confrontation spiraled even further when Van Hollen repeatedly questioned Patel about lying to Congress. Patel insisted he had not perjured himself.

The two men eventually began challenging each other to take sobriety tests.

“Are you willing to take the test … it’s called the audit test that members of our active duty military and others take to determine whether they have a drinking problem?” Van Hollen asked.

“I’ll take any tests you’re willing to take,” Patel responded.

“I will take it,” Van Hollen fired back. “Director Patel, I’ll take it. You’re ready to take it?”

“Let’s go, side-by-side,” Patel replied.

After the hearing, Patel continued escalating the fight online.

“Fact check @ChrisVanHollen,” Patel posted while referencing images from the El Salvador trip.

The ugly Senate clash landed amid mounting scrutiny surrounding Patel’s conduct.

The Atlantic reported earlier this year that Patel’s alleged late-night drinking and partying habits created operational headaches for aides and security staff.

One allegation claimed security personnel requested “breaching equipment” after they were unable to get a response from Patel behind a locked door.

Patel has denied every allegation in the report and is pursuing legal action against the publication.

Additional criticism followed after Patel appeared in a viral February video chugging beer with the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team in Milan.

NBC News later reported Trump himself was displeased by the optics and privately questioned Patel’s use of a government jet for the Italy trip.

Patel defended the travel as official FBI business tied to both Olympic security coordination and meetings with Italian law enforcement officials.

The Atlantic also reported Patel traveled with personalized bourbon bottles engraved with “Kash Patel FBI Director,” stylized with his preferred “Ka$h” spelling.

Despite the avalanche of criticism, the White House publicly defended Patel following reports Trump was frustrated with him.

“The President has full confidence in his administration,” the White House said in response to the NBC report.

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Clark Kelley

1 Comment

  2. Van Holland should be more concerned about aoc smoking swahili sausage and the numerous California commies with very close ties to the CCP.

    Reply

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