FBI Director Kash Patel was not having it when Democrat Sen. Cory Booker accused him of being a “failure” at his job and soon to be replaced by President Donald Trump.
“I believe you’re failing as a leader, and that your failure does have serious implications for the safety and security of Americans and our families. We’re more vulnerable to domestic and foreign attacks because of your failures of leadership. I don’t think you’re fit to lead the bureau,” Booker said during a Tuesday hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
“Here’s the thing, Mr. Patel,” he continued, “I think you’re not going to be around long. I think this might be your last full oversight hearing.
“Because, as much as you supplicate yourself to the will of Donald Trump and not the Constitution of the United States of America, Donald Trump has shown us in his first term, and in this term, he is not loyal to people like you. He will cut you loose,” the senator said.
Booker reiterated, “This may be the last time I have a hearing with you, because I don’t think you’re long for your job.”
Patel responded, “That rant of false information does not bring this country together.”
Corey Booker accused FBI Director Kash Patel of being a failed leader: “This might be the last time I have a hearing with you, cause I don’t think you’re long for your job.”
Patel was having NONE OF IT.
“If the FBI under my seven month leadership were failing…why do we… pic.twitter.com/2rCOjcoxci
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 16, 2025
Booker shot back, accusing Patel of making divisive social media posts that “tear the country apart.”
Patel responded, “It’s my time to address your falsehoods. And you are an embarrassment to the division in this country,” he asserted, raising his voice, as Booker continued to try to talk over him. “It’s my time. You had your time. Your time is over.”
The senator retorted, “You don’t tell me my time is over! The people of New Jersey tell me what my time is.”
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley then intervened, pounding his gavel and calling for order.
Grassley reminded Booker and the other senators of the committee that an agreement had been reached that Patel would be given time to respond to lawmakers’ questions and comments uninterrupted.
The FBI director then proceeded to list numerous statistics to counter Booker’s allegation that the agency is failing under his leadership.
Patel pointed to 23,000 violent felons being arrested this year alone, which he called a double increase from this time last year. He further noted that 6,000 weapons had been seized, 1,500 child predators arrested, 300 human traffickers jailed, 4,700 missing children found, and 1,600 kilograms of fentanyl seized, a 25 percent increase from last year.
Patel then asked, “How is it possible that we’re taking 8 kilograms off the streets of the cities in New Jersey and preventing the deaths of 607,000 people this year alone, a failure of the FBI and my leadership?
Next, addressing the overseas terror threat that Booker raised, the director queried, “How is it that we have counterintelligence arrests already this year exceeding the numbers from the entirety of last year?”
He specifically pointed to a 33 percent increase in arrests related to the People’s Republic of China, an 83 percent increase regarding Russia, and a 60 percent increase concerning Iran.
Booker has a history of making dramatic (some would argue melodramatic) allegations during committee hearings, including his “I am Spartacus” remarks during the confirmation hearing for now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018 and his 25-hour record-breaking filibuster in April about Trump’s alleged threat to American democracy.
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