Trump taps longtime ally Kash Patel to lead FBI

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump has selected Kash Patel to lead the FBI, closing one of the last remaining presidentially appointed positions available two months before taking office.“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 wrote on Truth Social Saturday night.“He played a pivotal role in uncovering the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, standing as an advocate for truth, accountability, and the Constitution,” he continued.“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.

Kash will work under our great Attorney General, Pam Bondi, to bring back Fidelity, Bravery, and Integrity to the FBI.”Patel brings a wealth of experience as a former public defender and later attorney for the US Justice Department’s national security division, and served in multiple intelligence and national security roles in the president-elect’s first administration.He’d been considered a frontrunner among the MAGA camp, who hope he can shake up the bureau and reverse its record of targeting conservatives in the Trump era.The New York native is known for deep loyalty to Trump — which has made him a target of the left despite serving as a National Security Council official, senior adviser to the acting Director of National Intelligence, and later, chief of staff to the acting United States secretary of defense.That loyalty has enraged Democrats, with countless talking heads appearing on left-leaning networks to disparage him.Former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe on CNN Thursday warned the audience of Patel, telling anchor Kaitlan Collins that “no part of the FBI’s mission is safe with Kash Patel in any position of leadership in the FBI.”“It’s inconceivable to me that an outsider with no experienc...