The Senate Judiciary Committee will host a confirmation hearing of President Trump’s FBI Director nominee Kash Patel on Wednesday.
It’s the same day the panel intends to vote on Attorney General nominee Pam Bondi.
Mr. Patel is not facing any headwinds from Republican senators who control the upper chamber 53 to 47, but Senate Minority Whip Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the top Democrat on the committee, has made it clear he won’t support the nomination.
“The person who is in charge of our nation’s leading law enforcement organization — the FBI — should be someone who is nonpartisan, solid, reliable, with demonstrated skill in law enforcement. We were reminded of this on 9/11 — that the FBI is the leading agency that we, in America, rely upon to keep us safe. The 30,000 professionals at the FBI have the skills and resources to do the job. They deserve a leader who understands the gravity of their mission,” Mr. Durbin said on the Senate floor Wednesday. “After meeting with Kash Patel, I have grave concerns about his fitness for the role of FBI director. Mr. Patel has neither the experience, the temperament nor the judgment to lead the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”
Mr. Patel will likely face rough questioning from Mr. Durbin and other Democrats on the panel, including his views on the Jan. 6, 2021, breach at the U.S. Capitol by pro-Trump supporters, how often he would be independent from Mr. Trump and the likelihood of weaponizing the bureau against Mr. Trump’s enemies.
Sen. Mike Lee, Utah Republican and member of the committee, responded to Mr. Durbin on X by posting, “If you want a guy to perpetuate the status quo at FBI, Kash Patel is not your guy.”
He added, “But if you want aggressive reform, Kash is exactly what you’ve been looking for.”
Mr. Trump, when he first tapped Mr. Patel, lauded him as the “most qualified” nominee in history to lead the FBI.
Sen. Charles E. Grassley, Iowa Republican who leads the Judiciary Committee, has long been at odds with the FBI’s leadership and what he sees as corruption.
The bureau has been questioned over reports of FBI abuse of power, retaliation against whistleblowers, election interference, manipulation of crime statistics, sexual misconduct, bureau discrimination based on political and religious beliefs, intentional withholding or slow-walking of requested documents, and intimidation of private citizens who attended school board meetings.
In recent years, former FBI Director Christopher A. Wray weathered intense scrutiny of the FBI’s investigations related to the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, the targeting of the Catholic Church, the 2022 raid on Mr. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and the pursuit of pro-life activists who protested at abortion clinics.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.