FBI chief defends handling of Kirk probe, Epstein files in combative hearing

A defiant Kash Patel defended his tumultuous tenure as FBI director in congressional testimony Tuesday and clashed with Democratic senators who accused him of pursuing partisan grievances at the nation’s preeminent law enforcement agency that have left the country less safe.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Patel told his detractors at the start of Tuesday’s FBI oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. “If you want to criticize my 16 years of service, please bring it on.”

His tone remained pugilistic on topics including the probe into the slaying of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, his decision not to release any more documents from the Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking probe and his controversial firings of senior FBI agents, including some who worked on investigations of President Donald Trump.

Repeatedly, Patel dismissed questions from Democrats as “disgraceful” or “disgusting” and twice erupted into heated shouting matches with senators, including one in which he derided Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) as a “political buffoon” and “the biggest fraud to ever sit in the United States Senate.”

Throughout the four-hour grilling, Republicans on the committee largely backed Patel’s leadership, hailing his efforts to fight violent crime, disrupt drug trafficking networks and push for a more transparent FBI. They congratulated him on the arrest of a suspect in last week’s Kirk shooting after a 33-hour search — and used the opportunity to blame the attack on “leftist” politics.

Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) praised Patel’s efforts to reform an FBI the senator described as “infected by politics” during previous administrations. “You’ve begun the important work of returning the FBI to its law enforcement mission,” he said.

Patel’s testimony in the Senate — and his planned appearance during a separate hearing before the House Judiciary Committee set for Wednesday — come at a transformative moment for the agency of roughly 36,000 employees and at a crucial point for his future as FBI director.

Under his watch, scores of top leaders have been fired or forced out and the bureau has deployed resources away from investigating counterterrorism and public corruption to assist in the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration and efforts to fight street-level crime in Washington, D.C.

Meanwhile, Patel has faced scrutiny for his role in the Justice Department’s decision this summer not to release more Epstein files and for missteps in the Kirk investigation, including a social media post in which Patel announced that a “subject” of the probe had been taken into custody the night of the attack. Patel walked back those statements hours later, when he acknowledged the person had been cleared by law enforcement and released.

Patel’s handling of both matters has drawn criticism from members of Trump’s right-wing base and prompted some influential conservative commentators to publicly call for his dismissal.

Addressing the controversy over the Kirk investigation Tuesday, Patel was quick to personally take credit for steps that led to the arrest, including the decision to release video and photos that eventually led to an identification of suspect Tyler Robinson. He said the FBI continues to investigate “anyone and everyone involved” in private chat groups on the online platform Discord, where Robinson allegedly discussed the shooting.

As for his own social media posts during the search, Patel remained defiant.

“Could I have been more careful in my verbiage? … Sure,” he said. “But I was doing [my] best. … I don’t see it as a mistake.”

Tuesday’s hearing was also Patel’s first appearance before the Senate Judiciary panel since his confirmation hearings in January, when the former Justice Department prosecutor, congressional staffer and right-wing pundit defended his qualifications and pledged he would not use his role as director to seek revenge against Trump’s political foes.

Democrats accused him of breaking that promise, noting the firings of dozens of veteran agents who worked on investigations tied to the president or the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Three former top FBI officials, including former acting director Brian Driscoll, sued the agency last week over their dismissals and alleged Patel indicated he was acting on guidance from the White House.

“I’m seeing an FBI leadership more focused on social media clout and on political revenge than on fighting crime,” Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) said in his questioning of the director.

Patel repeatedly insisted he had not broken his earlier vows to Congress and that all personnel decisions were his and his alone. But he sidestepped questions over whether he had discussed any of the terminations with White House officials.

“Anyone that’s been terminated failed to meet the needs of the FBI and uphold their constitutional duties,” Patel said.

He was also quick to blame others for the Justice Department’s decision to not to release more of the Epstein files. He said the FBI’s ability to disclose more had been hamstrung by prior prosecutorial and judicial decisions and the limited focus of the original Epstein probe.

“This administration has done more to turn over all the credible information we are legally able to,” he said. “And we will continue to work with Congress to achieve that end.”

But as questions about Epstein kept coming, Patel showed several flashes of frustration. At one point, he insisted “there is no credible information” to suggest that Epstein trafficked young women to any other individuals.

“If there was, I would bring the case yesterday,” he said.

His annoyance boiled over later during his heated exchange with Schiff.

“All you care about is a child sex predator that was prosecuted under a prior administration, and the Obama Justice Department and the Biden Justice Department did squat,” Patel shouted.

Though federal charges were brought against Epstein and associate Ghislaine Maxwell during Trump’s first administration, the Biden Justice Department oversaw Maxwell’s conviction at trial.

Trump has echoed Patel’s fatigue with debate over Epstein, and on Tuesday expressed confidence in Patel’s continued leadership at the FBI.

“Take a look at what he did with respect to this horrible person that he just got to. He did it in two days,” the president said, referring to Robinson’s arrest in the Kirk shooting as he addressed reporters in Washington.

“I have confidence in everybody in this administration,” he said. “My administration … it’s so far the best administration ever formed.”

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• Cleve R. Wootson Jr. contributed.