WASHINGTON: The Republican controlled US Senate Thursday confirmed Kash Patel, a stubborn loyalist who has threatened to go after President Donald Trump’s political enemies, as director of the FBI, the country’s top law enforcement agency.
Patel, 44, whose nomination triggered harsh, but ultimately meaningless resistance from Democrats, was approved by a 51-49 vote.
The vote was shared along party lines with the exception of two Republican senators, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, who voted not to confirm Patel to lead the 38,000 strong federal investigative agency.
Patel set fire to Democrats for his promotion of conspiracy theories, his defense of pro-trump rebels who attacked Capitol on January 6, 2021, and his promise to eradicate members of a supposed “deep state” planning to oppose it Republican President.
Democratic Senator Dick Durbin said in a Senate’s speech that opposed Patel’s nomination that he is “dangerous, politically extreme” and has “repeatedly expressed his intention of using our country’s most important law enforcement agent to retaliate against his political enemies.”
The Senate has approved all of Trump’s cabinet choices so far and emphasizes its iron grip on the Republican Party.
Among them, Tulsi Gabbard is confirmed as the nation’s spy chief despite previous support for conflicting nations, including Russia and Syria, and Vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in order to be health secretary.
Patel said in a statement of X that he was honored to become the FBI director.
“The American people deserve a FBI that is transparent, responsible and obliged to justice,” he said.
“The politicization of our legal system has eroded public trust – but it ends today,” he added. “My mission as a director is clear: Let the good police be the police – and rebuild confidence in the FBI.
“And to those who seek to harm Americans – consider your warning,” he said. “We will chase you down in every corner of this planet.”
‘Enema list’
Patel replaces Christopher Wray, who was appointed FBI chief of Trump during his first period.
However, the relationship between Wray and Trump was strained, and although he had three years back in his 10-year tenure, Wray withdrew after Trump won November’s presidential election.
A son of Indian immigrants and former federal prosecutor, the New York-born Patel earned in several high-level positions under Trump’s first administration, including as Senior Director of Terrorism in the National Security Council.
There were fiery exchanges on Patel’s confirmation hearing last month when Democrats brought a list of 60 suspected “Deep State” actors – all critics of Trump – he included in a 2022 book that he said should be examined or “otherwise revised.”
Patel has refused to have a “enema list” and told the Senate Legal Committee that he was simply interested in bringing offenders to Book.
“All FBI employees will be protected from political retaliation,” he said.
The FBI has been in turmoil since Trump joined, and a number of agents have been fired or closed down, including some involved in the prosecution of Trump to try to overthrow the election results in 2020 and abuse classified documents.
Nine FBI employees have sued the Ministry of Justice trying to block the efforts to collect information about agents involved in investigating Trump and Capitol Riot.
In their complaint, the FBI agents said the efforts were part of a “cleansing” orchestrated by Trump as “politically motivated retaliation.”
Trump pardoned Trump on his first day in the White House more than 1,500 of his followers who stormed Congress in an attempt to block the certification of Democrat Joe Bid’s election victory.
