Government watchdogs said Thursday that Republicans in the U.S. Senate had demonstrated that "political fealty" to President Donald Trump takes precedence over the nation's best interests when they voted to confirm Kash Patel, a conspiracy theorist and former federal prosecutor, to lead the FBI.
Patel has joined Trump in threatening to prosecute journalists and written a children's book elevating the baseless claim that Trump was the winner of the 2020 election—but has shown what Tony Carrk, executive director of Accountable.US, called a "total lack of relevant experience to lead the FBI," potentially placing the country in danger of national security threats as the head of the top law enforcement agency will likely place his focus on enacting political revenge on Trump's political opponents.
"If and when Trump FBI Director Patel follows through on his threats to trample democratic norms and jail journalists and political critics, the Republican senators who allowed it will be every bit as responsible," said Carrk. "If and when Patel undermines our national security interests in service to the foreign adversary-linked companies he got rich consulting for, senators who voted yes will have no one to blame but themselves."
"Senators who disregarded the clear and present danger of Patel's nomination have only made our nation less safe and more susceptible to foreign influence," added Carrk.
All but two Republican senators voted to confirm Patel, with Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) joining the Democrats in opposing him.
"Patel's confirmation is a direct threat to the safety and freedoms of every American, and every Republican senator who voted for him owns what comes next."
The rest of the Senate GOP voted to hand Trump "exactly what he wanted: a political enforcer at the helm of the FBI," said Christina Harvey, executive director of Stand Up America.
"Kash Patel is an unqualified extremist who openly promised to go after Trump's perceived enemies, including members of Congress, journalists, and law enforcement officials," said Harvey. "No FBI director in history has been so unqualified for the job. Patel's confirmation is a direct threat to the safety and freedoms of every American, and every Republican senator who voted for him owns what comes next."
Republicans who supported Patel's confirmation, said Public Citizen co-president Lisa Gilbert, "made it clear that their loyalty is not to the American people or democracy, but to the increasingly authoritarian leadership of Donald Trump."
In 2023, Patel told former Trump adviser Steve Bannon that he would "go out and find the conspirators, not just in government but in the media. We're going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections."
In addition to pushing election denial conspiracy theories and threatening journalists, Patel has embraced the QAnon movement—identified by the FBI itself as a domestic terrorism threat—and expressed a desire to dismantle the law enforcement agency, replacing its headquarters with a "museum for the deep state."
He has also threatened to retaliate against thousands of FBI agents who have investigated the violent riot perpetrated by Trump supporters on January 6, 2021, aimed at overturning the 2020 election results.
"Patel's confirmation is a clear signal that federal law enforcement will be weaponized for political revenge," said Wendy Via, co-founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE). "His own words lay out the blueprint—silencing critics, dismantling oversight, and punishing those he deems enemies. This is authoritarianism, not justice."
The FBI, said GPAHE, cannot be seen as "an independent institution" with Patel at the helm.
"It has become a weapon in a broader strategy to suppress dissent and reshape American governance in Trump's image," said the group. "As democracy crumbles under the weight of extremism, Patel's record signals that federal law enforcement will no longer serve the rule of law—it will serve the political ambitions of those in power."
