Kash Patel suggested those calling him dangerous for a role in President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet should show “proof” of their claims, calling out former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe specifically.
McCabe’s recent comments against Patel, claiming that “no part of the FBI’s mission” would be “safe” with Patel in a leadership role, come as the former Department of Defense chief of staff is rumored to be in Trump’s consideration for FBI director. In response to McCabe, Patel pointed to his 16-plus years in government service” to rebut such claims, contending that he was only beholden to the U.S. Constitution.
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“So if anyone has a complaint about that and questions my unwavering commitment to the Constitution, I’m happy to talk to them about it,” Patel said on Fox News’s Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo. “I’m especially happy to talk to the media about it. But you can look at my record, and those calling me a danger, let’s just ask them for a proof, a piece of evidence that actually shows I’ve committed any constitutional violations or any ethical quandaries, and I’d love to hear their response to this.”
Patel also underscored the need for the United States’s agencies to regain trust from the country’s citizens, suggesting one way of doing this is “exposure of corruption.” He argued that the public only knows half of what happened with “the Russiagate-hole,” and that full exposure of how these agencies “unlawfully surveil” people is needed to restore this trust.
“The people need to know that there’s been a de-weaponization, a defanging of the Department of Justice, and their houses of worship will no longer be raided, but they need to be shown the documents that said this was the reasoning they weaponized justice,” Patel said. “And that, in my opinion, is how Congress can most importantly secure the trust or re-secure the trust of these agencies and departments.”
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Former Rep. Mike Rogers, a Michigan Republican and former FBI special agent, was rumored to also be in the running for Trump’s FBI director. However, Trump senior adviser Dan Scavino stated that such a possibility is “not happening,” noting that the president-elect himself had said, “I have never even given it a thought.”
Other possible candidates, including former U.S. Customs and Border Protection official Mark Morgan and former U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen of Missouri, were floated in a report from CNN.
