FBI Director Kash Patel Patel is genuinely worried that his position may be at risk, reported The Atlantic citing multiple current officials, along with former colleagues who remain in close contact with him. They reportedly note that he has reasons for this concern, some of which are linked to what witnesses describe as episodes of heavy drinking.
Following Attorney General s removal on April 2, Patel was widely seen as one of the next officials likely to be dismissed, the report noted. “We’re all just waiting for the word” that he’s officially out, one FBI official said this week, it further reported. A former official also told journalist Jonathan Lemire that Patel’s anxiety about his position was “justified.”
According to an administration official and two individuals close to the White House, senior figures within US President Donald Trump administration have already begun discussing potential replacements for him, the report said.
What reportedly happened on April 10 ahead of weekend?
As he was preparing to leave for the weekend on Friday, April 10, Patel reportedly ran into issues logging into an internal system. Believing he had been locked out, he grew alarmed and began urgently contacting aides and allies, saying he thought the had dismissed him, the report said, adding that according to nine people familiar with the incident, his reaction was notably frantic, with two describing it as a “freak-out.”
He had not been dismissed. According to two individuals familiar with the situation, the login issue was likely just a technical glitch and was resolved quickly. “It was all ultimately bullshit,” one FBI official said.
DOJ’s ethics handbook mentions that “an employee is prohibited from habitually using alcohol or other intoxicants to excess”.
Patel’s drinking habits are widely known, the report mentioned. During an official trip to Italy in February, he was recorded downing beer alongside the US men’s Olympic hockey team after their gold-medal win. The episode reportedly led the president, who abstains from alcohol and lost his brother after a long battle with alcoholism, to personally call the FBI director and express his displeasure, according to two officials familiar with the conversation, as per The Atlantic.
However, its sources said Patel’s alcohol use extends well beyond occasional drinking. Some officials and members of the administration have reportedly privately raised concerns about whether alcohol may have contributed to moments when he shared incorrect details about ongoing law enforcement investigations, including in the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s murder.
Some of Patel’s colleagues within the FBI are concerned that his personal conduct may be putting public safety at risk, the report noted. They believe the role of FBI director demands constant availability and full attention, particularly during a time when the country is engaged in conflict with a state that supports terrorism.
According to both current and former officials, there has reportedly been longstanding unease about how Patel might handle a domestic terrorist incident while in office, and those concerns have grown more intense in recent weeks following Trump’s decision to begin a military campaign against Iran. “That’s what keeps me up at night,” the report cited an official as saying.
Just days before the United States began its war with Iran, Patel dismissed several members of a counterintelligence team that had been partly focused on Iran. In testimony to Congress, he stated that the agents were removed because their involvement in investigating Trump’s handling of classified documents put them in breach of the bureau’s ethics guidelines. However, several officials expressed concern that the dismissals were carried out too hastily and could leave the country understaffed at a critical time.
