The Senate vote came out 51-49. That was the margin by which Kash Patel became the next director of the FBI in February 2025, a count the Guardian said reflected how divisive his nomination had been.
Patel was sworn in on Feb. 22, according to NTD, the outlet of The Epoch Times. He promised to rebuild the bureau’s credibility and make it an agency Americans can trust.
A hearing that left Democrats unconvinced
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee had pressed him hard at his confirmation hearing on Jan. 30. The Guardian reported that Patel declined to commit to staying away from investigations of people he had cast as Donald Trump’s adversaries in his book. He also said he believed the FBI answers to the White House. At the same hearing, he said no “retributive actions” would be taken by any FBI if he were confirmed.
The Guardian noted that Democrats, who had expected a backlash that would sink the nomination, saw his record in Trump’s first term, his sharp remarks about the bureau and his role in the classified documents case as disqualifying. No real resistance followed. Part of the reason, the paper said, was that he looked less controversial than some other Trump picks, such as Pete Hegseth for defense secretary.
Questions about the classified documents case went unanswered in the hearing room. Patel had been subpoenaed to testify on whether documents seized at Mar-a-Lago were covered by a “standing declassification order”, as he had claimed in public comments. The Guardian said he first cited his fifth amendment right against self-incrimination and testified only after a federal judge in Washington authorized limited immunity. Under questioning from Senator Cory Booker, he conceded that he had seen Trump issue a declassification order for some documents but did not know if it applied to those found at Mar-a-Lago.
Who he is
Patel was once a public defender in Florida. He joined the justice department in 2014 as a line prosecutor in the national security division. In 2017 he became a top Republican aide on the House intelligence committee, where he wrote a memo accusing the FBI and the justice department of abusing surveillance powers to spy on a Trump adviser. Critics called the memo misleading, though an inspector general later found errors in parts of the surveillance. By the end of Trump’s first term he was chief of staff to defense secretary Chris Miller.
Two agencies at once
Patel’s workload grew within days. On Monday, Feb. 24, he was sworn in as acting head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, putting him in charge of two Justice Department agencies. The ATF welcomed him on social media after his first visit to its Washington headquarters. The National Rifle Association called the appointment “a great first step” toward reforming what it described as a “deeply troubled” agency, while NSSF’s Lawrence Keane said it would return the ATF to its proper role as a law enforcement agency.
Days earlier, on Feb. 21, Attorney General Pam Bondi had removed ATF chief legal counsel Pamela Hicks from her post.
Sources
- FBI Director Kash Patel Sworn in as Acting ATF Chief | NTD
- US Senate narrowly confirms Kash Patel as next FBI director | Trump administration | The Guardian
